


Blindsided

by Fanofeverything101



Category: Falling Skies
Genre: Blindness, Everyone but Hal needs to smarten up, Gen, Hurt Hal Mason, Hurt/Comfort, Protective Hal, Tom wasn't the greatest father to Hal but he's trying, set in season 4 during and after bombing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-12 20:54:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 31,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29640537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fanofeverything101/pseuds/Fanofeverything101
Summary: After Lexi turns against her family and the 2nd Mass, they are attacked by the Espheni. Once the smokes clears, the Mason family finds that Hal had been caught in the crossfire, and Anne is not sure he'll ever make a full recovery. *AU season 4, Hal gets injured instead of Maggie, rated T to be safe*
Relationships: Ben Mason & Hal Mason, Hal Mason & Matt Mason, Hal Mason & Tom Mason, Margaret/Hal Mason
Kudos: 3





	1. Explosions

**Author's Note:**

> So, I hated the love triangle between Hal, Maggie, and Ben. And when I was thinking about how it all started, with Maggie getting hurt, and reading another fanfic about Hal getting hurt instead of Maggie, I started thinking of a different twist of what could’ve happened if Hal had gotten hurt that day instead of Maggie. This fic is inspired by something that happened in another TV show that I love, and I really wanted to write what it would’ve been like for Hal, so I did.   
> This story literally starts right after the Mechs attack and kill a whole whack of people before they are defeated. There is no explosion so Maggie isn’t hurt at all, and there’s a bit of time before the second wave comes in.

Once all the Mechs were destroyed, the fighters quickly realized they needed more ammo and weapons. They barely survived the first wave of the major Espheni attack, and they knew more was coming. That was why Hal found himself running towards the building that they had decided to use for their armoury to get more. No one had any idea when the next attack would occur so everyone who went to scavenge for more weapons had to move quickly.

Entering the concrete building, Hal immediately found some old duffle bags and started filling them with all the weapons he could grab. There were guns, grenades, ammo, and even some knifes if it came to hand to hand combat. As he worked quickly, Hal couldn’t stop his thoughts from racing. It had been a crazy few days, with his entire family deciding to trust Lexi even though they had every reason to suspect she might turn against him. His family furious with him for thinking that Lexi could be a threat, and look where that got him. His family in pain because she actually did betray them, and his best friend dead.

_Sure you still got it under control Dad?_ Hal thought bitterly to himself before he mentally kicked himself. He couldn’t blame his Dad for wanting to believe the best in his own daughter, for thinking that he could help her. It wasn’t anyone’s fault but the aliens for making Lexi turn against them creating another problem in this, already, huge mess.

_It’s your fault that this mess occurred though._

Hal slowed down his actions as he shook his head, trying to shake away the small voice in his head. It was not the first time he heard that little voice. He had heard it on and off as he grew up, but it had started becoming louder and more frequent over the last year or so.

_It wasn’t my fault, I tried to warn Dad,_ Hal tried to convince himself as he kept working, looking through all the drawers and cupboards for any weapons or ammo he might’ve missed.

_If you were just strong enough to fight the bug, you wouldn’t have brought Lexi and Anne to Karen and you wouldn’t be in this mess,_ the voice whispered back.

_Shut up_ , Hal silently responded, like he usually did, hoping the voice would quiet down for now. He didn’t have time to listen to the stupid voice right now.

He was eight the first time he heard it. He had joined this kid baseball team, as there wasn’t a lacrosse team for kids his age. He was practicing throwing the ball so he could try to be the pitcher the next game, but it was hard practicing by himself, so he went inside to find his Dad, who was sitting at the kitchen table with his papers in front of them, going over them with a red pen.

“Dad, will you come out and play with me?” Hal had asked.

“Sorry Hal, I wish I could, but I’m busy grading papers right now. Later, okay?” His Dad replied, not even bothering to look up at him. A little dejectedly, Hal nodded and went back outside to at least try and get some practice in.

Half an hour later, his Mom called him inside to get washed up for dinner. He came inside to see Ben sitting on their Dad’s lap as the history Professor read him one of the four-year old’s kid books. The papers he was working on were missing from the table. Hal told himself it was just because his Dad had stopped working so they could get ready for supper and reading Ben a book was a lot faster than going outside and playing catch, especially since they would’ve had to go get cleaned up anyways. That was when he heard the voice whisper, _Dad loves Ben more than you_.

As if he knew Hal was thinking about him, Ben appeared in the doorway, panting a little as if he’d just run for over a mile.

“Where were you?” Hal asked in a cool tone, knowing that Ben hadn’t been with them when the first wave of the Espheni attacked. Nobody could find him and no one had the chance to look for him.

“Trying to stop this attack from happening. Didn’t work though.” Ben replied, slightly defensive as he heard the subtle jab in his older brother’s voice.

“Well, give me a hand then. We don’t know how long it will be until the aliens send their second wave.” Hal told him. Ben immediately came over and started helping him, though not as fast as Hal would’ve liked. He was about to tell his younger brother to hurry up, when Ben spoke up.

“Look Hal, about, everything that happened with Lexi,” Ben started, looking over his shoulder at his brother.

“Ben, we really don’t have time for this. The Espheni most likely have a second wave coming we aren’t ready for it yet. We can talk about it later.” Hal said with a frustrated tone. Ben, knowing that _later_ for Hal, always meant _never_ , so he pressed on.

“Hal, you know Dad was just worried and wanted to help Lexi. She was a part of our family, she still is. You’re supposed to be there for family when they need you, not turn against them.” Ben argued. Hal immediately stopped moving, a surge of anger filling his entire body as the voice in his head whispered, _Then how come your Dad wasn’t really there for you when you were paralyzed? Why wasn’t he there when you tried to tell him about possibly being the mole? It’s because he doesn’t care about you, not the way he does with Ben, Matt, and Lexi, despite what she’s done_.

There was a small part of him that tried to get him to calm down, to defend his Dad, to remind him that his Dad was only trying to help his sister, but Hal’s anger, frustration, pain that he had been pushing down for so very long refused to be ignored any longer. It filled his entire body, wanting to make itself known and honestly, a part of Hal wanted to let it out.

“I did not turn against you.” Hal replied in a barely controlled voice as he slowly turned to face Ben, his jaw clenched tightly, “All I did, was try to warn Dad that she might not be on our side. He’s the one who made it seem like I was turning against my family when I wasn’t. And guess what she did? She killed Lourdes, said that humans are evil. Even the people who wanted peace, were literally just slaughtered, and you think _I’m_ the one who turned against our family?”

“That’s not what I’m trying to say.” Ben said calmly, quickly realizing that his words had the exact opposite effect as he hoped they would. He just wanted Hal to see how their Dad viewed what he had said. He didn’t mean for Hal to take it like that. His older brother never seemed to care that much about what people did to him, even though he probably should’ve. Whenever someone would apologize to him, he’d blow off and said forget about it. Ben did not expect Hal to take this so personally and wondered what exactly it was that set this time apart from the others.

“Then what are you trying to say Ben?” Hal questioned.

“I’m trying to say that, that while you had a point, you didn’t have to go about it the way you did. You pretty cold Hal. You came over with a gun, and Pope and a whole lot of other people that wanted to kill her. How did you expect Dad to act?” Ben tried to explain.

“That was the third time I tried to talk to him. The first time, he ignored me. The second time, he tried to make me feel guilty for raising concerns about Lexi and accused me of starting a murder party. The third time, I tried to come alone, but they followed. And yet, you and Dad and everyone else really thought I’d stoop so low as to kill my own sister without giving her a chance. You really think that little of me?” Hal said with such certainty that Ben was forced to go over the memories of what happened the last few days.

He remembered how he was the one who saw Hal coming with the group of people led by Pope, telling his Dad that they were coming for Lexi. How Hal had tried to say that he was trying to protect everyone, that he couldn’t live with himself is she hurt the people he was trying to keep safe, that they were his family too. He didn’t see the other times Hal had tried to talk to their Dad, didn’t even really know about it. He was too busy trying to defend Lexi. He didn’t even realize what he had suddenly thought of his older brother. Too busy trying to say that Lexi wasn’t a threat, yet immediately treated Hal like he was one. No wonder he was so hurt and so angry.

Ben opened his mouth to say something, but Hal beat him to it.

“Look, we don’t have time for this. Another wave could attack at any moment. So, either help me, or get out of here.” Hal practically ordered. Ben stared at his older brother, finally seeing the hurt, pain hidden underneath his anger.

“Hal, we never meant to hurt you. You’re my brother, I’d, never, ever, want to hurt you.” Ben told him, his voice a lot quiet than it was before. Hal’s angry expression immediately softened, but was still carefully guarded and if Ben looked hard into his older brother’s eyes, he could see the hurt that was still there.

“Well, that’s easy to say, isn’t it.” Hal didn’t give Ben a chance to respond before he said, “Just go Ben.”

Knowing that Ben wouldn’t be able to get anything else out of Hal, that the older Mason was right about being attacked at any moment, and that he had pushed way too far than he should have, Ben turned to start walking out of the building. As he reached the doorway though, he noticed the Espheni beamers flying towards their camp.

“Hal!” Ben called for his brother. Hal came over quickly, sensing from Ben’s tone that it was important, and saw the beamers coming straight for them.

“Come on, we have to go.” Hal told him as he started to run out of the building. He stopped after only taking a few steps when he noticed that Ben wasn’t behind him.

“What about the other bags with weapons?” Ben asked. He saw that Hal already had grabbed one, but there were two others that were still lying open on the table, and Ben rushed to go get them. He didn’t even know that Hal came after him until he grabbed him by his coat and started pulling him towards the door. At least he waited long enough for Ben to grab the weapons though. Outside, they could hear the sound of explosions.

The sound of a beamer overhead filled the air, along with a low whistle. Hal quickly realized that a bomb was falling somewhere close by and tried to move faster. Ben however, hadn’t put it together yet. Instead, just following his older brother. Suddenly, he felt Hal push him out the door hard enough that he fell to the ground, hard. The last thing he heard was the sound a blast before everything went black.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Ben wasn’t sure how long he was out. He woke up lying flat on his stomach on the cold ground, the two bags filled with guns, ammo, grenades and other weapons where lying beside him. He slowly pushed himself up, and saw the fires that was occurring all around them

“Hal.” Ben called, hoping his brother, who was just behind him, wasn’t knocked unconscious too, or at the very least, was awake by now. He turned around to look for his brother, but didn’t see him. Instead, he saw that the building they had been using for an armoury was now a pile of rubble. He had barely gotten out the door, his legs only about two feet away from it. But, Hal was behind him and pushed him forward. There was no way Hal would’ve gotten out of the building in time if Ben nearly didn’t.

“No. Oh no, no, no, no. Hal!” Ben yelled as he crawled over to the rubble and started pulling and pushing the debris out of the way, barely acknowledging that most of it was concrete blocks.

“Hal, answer me!” Ben begged as he kept moving, trying to find his older brother. There was no answer though. Despite his spikes giving him more strength and endurance, Ben wasn’t moving fast enough. Some of the debris had hit him and his body was still in a bit of shock from being knocked out and having a building collapse just two feet away from him.

Ben looked around for anyone who might’ve been close by, anyone who could help him free his brother, but there was no one. He could barely hear other people’s voices, some crying, some screaming and yelling, but he couldn’t see anyone. All he could see was fire and smoke outlining destroyed buildings. In the middle of all the destruction, Ben screamed.

“Somebody help me please! HELP!”


	2. Fires Still Burning

“HELP!” Ben screamed for what felt like the millionth time as he kept trying to push the debris away so he could find his brother. He wasn’t sure if anyone was going to answer, there were so many others screaming for help. His voice was just one of many, but his call was answered.

“Ben? Ben!” The middle Mason looked up to see Weaver running towards him. He had no idea where the older man came from, but he was grateful to see him.

“It’s Hal, the building collapsed and he was still inside.” Ben explained as the Colonel dropped to his knees. Weaver was first concerned about Ben, seeing a blood running down the side of his face from a cut on his forehead, but he immediately started helping the teenager unbury his brother.

Neither of them were sure how long they kept digging, kept pulling the heavy that made up the walls in in the now, destroyed building. They didn’t stop, didn’t slow down, until Ben moved a brick which exposed Hal’s left shoulder and part of his face.

“Hal!” Ben shouted as he moved faster to free his unconscious brother. Weaver moved closer and pressed two fingers to Hal’s neck, also lowering his head closer to Hal’s.

“He’s got a pulse, and he’s still breathing.” Weaver informed Ben, who smiled in relief before looking back down at the young man.

“It’s going to be okay Hal, we’ll have you out of here soon.” Weaver barely heard Ben whisper to his brother, his only focus on freeing Tom’s oldest child. As he lifted another brick that was laying against the back of Hal’s head though, he saw a line of something red and wet along the edge. Blood.

Looking up to tell Ben, he saw that the blonde was already staring at the blood. He looked back down at his big brother, slowly putting his hand over Hal’s hair. Suddenly, he pulled it away, fingers now also red. Weaver immediately started pushing away the rest debris off of Hal, as did Ben. Soon, Hal’s body was completely free.

“Ben, you think you can help me carry him to the infirmary?” Weaver questioned, unsure if the other Mason was injured more than the cut on his head. Ben looked up at him, a determined expression on his face.

“I know I can.” Ben replied.

“Alright, you get his shoulders, I’ll get his legs.” Ben did as he was told and together, the two carried the injured man towards the infirmary.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

The infirmary was beyond crowded. People were coming in, not only to get much needed medical attention from the attacks launched by the Espheni, but also to hide from the bombs that might be dropped on them yet again.

Anne and Kadar, along with some other volunteers had come in to prepare for the wounded that no doubt would need their attention from the oncoming attack, but nothing could’ve prepared them for this. They were doing their best though, even though Kadar was not really a medical doctor, he was proving to be quite useful which Anne was grateful for, especially since Lourdes was no longer there to help her.

“Anne!” Ben’s voice broke through the chaos, causing both her and Kadar to turn their heads to look at him.

“Ben, where,” Anne started to ask him where he had been, but stopped once she saw him and Weaver carrying an unconscious Hal, “Oh my G*d. What happened to him?”

“He was in the armoury. A bomb went off and the building collapsed.” Weaver explained as they brought him closer.

“Bring him in here.” Anne directed them to a different room. She opened the door, revealing a small room with medical equipment on the shelves and a metal table in the center of the room, where Ben and Weaver gently laid Hal on top of. Anne and Kadar were right behind them.

“Anne, he got hit in the back of the head by brick.” Weaver revealed once Hal was on the table. She immediately strode over to the end where Hal’s head lay, and turned it so she could get a look, and easily spotted the cut.

“He’s going to be okay, right Anne?” Ben practically begged for her assurance.

“I’m going to do everything I can to make sure he is Ben, I promise, but right now I need you two to go outside.” The doctor replied, glancing over at him.

“Come on Ben, let’s let her work.” Weaver told him and ushered the teenager, who allowed it, though reluctantly. Once they were gone, Anne started examining the young man. After a few minutes, she turned to the other doctor in the room.

“Kadar, you don’t happen to have an kind of x-ray machine here, do you?” Anne wondered, hoping the answer was yes. Besides the cut on the back of Hal’s head, she couldn’t see any evidence of any other injury, but knew there might be more inside his body.

“Yes actually. I made a portable one. One of my little projects over the last four months.” Kadar answered.

“Go get it.” Anne ordered. Kadar immediately left the room to do as he was told while looked back down at her patient and whispered, “It’s going to be okay Hal.”

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

As soon as Ben and Weaver exited the room, once again in the main room of the infirmary that was filled with people, Ben immediately turned and stared at the door, as though he was trying to see through it so he could find out what was going on. Only about ten minutes after they left Hal’s room though, Kadar came rushing out, only to rush back in a couple of minutes later carrying a huge machine.

While Ben watched the door, Weaver looked around the room, trying to see if he could spot either Tom, Matt, or Maggie anywhere in the vicinity. He didn’t see any of them though. Last time he saw them, they were still fighting the on coming Espheni attack. Knowing that they needed to know what was going on with Hal, as well as there being a chance that they might be injured or needed help as well, Weaver turned to face Ben.

“Ben, I’m going to try and find your Dad, let him know what’s going on. Wanna come help?” Weaver asked, thinking maybe a distraction would be good for Ben. Not to mention, the people still outside, who were wounded and/or trapped would be needing a lot of help as well, but Ben shook his head.

“I’m going to stay here. Just in case.” Ben replied, staring at the door, his voice a little shaky.

“Okay. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Weaver told him. Ben nodded, but kept his eyes on the door that led to the room where his brother was. The Colonel placed his hand on the teenager’s shoulder, finally getting his full attention.

“Hey. Hal’s tough, he’ll be okay.” The older man assured him. Again, Ben nodded, but said nothing, and turned to look again at the door. With a sigh, Weaver turned and walked out of the building to go find Ben’s father.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Once Kadar brought Anne the makeshift x-ray machine and told her how it worked, she held the scanner part in one hand, and the screen which would show her what the scanner was picking up in the other, and started to run it over Hal’s still unconscious form slowly.

“Well?” Kadar spoke after Anne stopped once the scanner reached Hal’s ribs.

“He’s got two broken ribs, but they don’t need to be set, luckily. Some others that just look pretty bruised. He got off lucky here.” Anne informed him, and continued dragging the scanner over Hal’s body. Once she reached his head though, she gasped and a fearful expression came upon her face.

“What?” Kadar asked worriedly as he came over to her to look at the screen of the machine so he could see what she was looking at.

“He’s got bleeding between his skull and brain.” Anne replied, her voice filled with worry.

“Intercranial hemorrhage. How bad?” Kadar wondered, still trying to look at the screen that Anne was holding tightly in her fist.

“It looks bad, but I can’t tell if the bleeding has stopped or not.” Anne responded, her tone still filled with worry and fear.

“Does the blood need to be removed?” Kadar questioned.

“I don’t know, I’m not a neurosurgeon.” Anne exclaimed with frustration, almost throwing the machine down to the ground.

It was too much, everything that happened over the last few days was becoming too much for her. Months of her worrying for her family ended, only for her daughter to turn against them all and kill Lourdes, the girl who was like her little sister, and for a major attack to be launched against them. And now her boyfriend’s oldest son was injured and she wasn’t sure if she could help him.

Kadar gently pulled the machine out of her hands and set it on the counter before turning back to her. When he did, he saw that she was starting to hyperventilate, and he placed his hand on her shoulder to get her attention.

“Anne, calm down. Just breathe.” Kadar tried to calm the other doctor. He normally wasn’t good at something like that but there was no else to do it. Once Anne appeared to relax a little, he said, “Okay, just list the facts. What are the possible scenarios for a problem like this?”

“If the bleeding has stopped, it might go away on its own and Hal could be fine, or the amount of blood that’s already there could be putting pressure on his brain causing damage. If it is still bleeding, then it definitely will. But if I go in to remove the blood, I could accidentally do more harm than good.” Anne listed, feeling more nervous and anxious as she realized all the things that could go wrong.

“Okay. Now, what do you want to do? What is your doctor’s instinct, your gut, telling you to do?” Kadar asked. Anne took another deep breath, weighing the options. After a few moments, she turned back to Kadar.

“Hand me the scalpel.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So no, Kadar doesn’t die. I was thinking of also having Lourdes live as well, but I thought that her death would have (should’ve had in the show if you ask me), more of an effect on everyone and I wanted to try and explore that a little. Hope you guys liked this chapter! Next one will be up in a week.


	3. Unearthed

An hour later, Anne had wrapped Hal’s ribs and drained the blood between his skull and brain with a needle and tube. Once it was done, she pulled the needle out and started to clean the cut. She used the same cut that the brick had already made, as it was in the right spot to get at the blood, but had to make it deeper, and had to cut some hair around the wound so it wouldn’t get in the wound and cause an infection. Luckily though, Hal’s hair was long enough that it was barely noticeable.

“Okay, done. All the blood has been drained, and the bleeding has stopped.” Anne announced to Kadar, who had been helping her by keeping the scanner over their patient’s head so she could see where the blood was.

“Good, here.” Kadar replied, handing Anne a gauze bandage.

“Thanks.” Anne said, taking the bandage and placing it over the cut.

“You did the right thing. Even if the bleeding stopped, the blood that escaped would’ve still kept pressure on his brain. It needed to be drained.” Kadar tried to make her feel better, another thing that wasn’t really his strong suit, but he could tell Anne needed it.

“I know.” The former pediatrician responded. She then grabbed her penlight that she kept in her pocket, turned it on, and forced Hal’s eyelids apart so she could check his pupils.

“Kadar, come look.” Kadar came over to the other side of the table and looked down at Hal’s eyes, and Anne opened them again so he could see how they were responding to the light.

“Tell me that doesn’t mean what I think it means.” Anne almost pleaded. Kadar watched as Hal’s pupils barely responded to the bright light and nodded.

“I think it does.” Anne let out a frustrated sighed, clenched both of her hands into tight fists and cursed under her breath. Loud noises from outside called for their attention. It had been increasing over the last hour, like they both knew it would, but now that Hal was stabilized, they had to go help the other wounded.

“We gotta go, more patients outside.” Anne said, mostly to herself. Kadar nodded, grabbed the x-ray machine, and walked out of the room. Anne however, took one last look at Hal.

The bruises from the bricks and other debris he was buried under where starting to show, and his skin looked pale against them. Other than that, he looked completely relaxed, as though he was just sleeping. Anne pressed a motherly kiss on his forehead, then left the room.

“Anne! Is he okay?” Ben demanded as before she could take two steps out the door. She hadn’t realized that he was out there waiting for her, though she wasn’t surprised. As she was about to tell him everything that happened to Hal, she saw the several injured people being brought in and knew they needed her immediate attention.

“He’s stable. He’s breathing on his own and his vitals are normal. I promise I’ll tell you more once I’m finished with the other patients, but Hal is stable.” Anne informed him, telling him the truth, but not all of it so he wouldn’t worry. Once she saw that Ben had acknowledged the information, she rushed over to help someone else.

Ben watched her leave for a moment, then looked back at the door. He wondered if he should go in, to wait beside his brother until the rest of his family arrived, but wasn’t sure if he was allowed. He remembered that sometimes doctors would keep everyone out of the patient’s room until they were better, and though he knew Hal was stable, he didn’t know what condition his older brother was, not too mention he was terrified of what he would find on the other side of the door, so Ben sat down on a chair beside the door and waited.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Weaver ran down the streets and paths to the bunker, where he last saw Tom and the rest of the fighters. Besides the fires that were still going from the bombs and explosions, it wasn’t as loud as before. The beamers had left and the Espheni didn’t appear to be launching a third wave. People were slowly coming out of the hiding places, but the largest group of people were by the entrance to the bunker, and they appeared to be digging, or something.

“Weaver! We need help!” A smaller figure yelled, a figure that Weaver recognized to be Matt Mason.

“You alright Matt?” Weaver asked as he rushed over to the youngest Mason boy.

“Yeah I’m fine, but Dad, Maggie, Pope and lots of others are trapped in the bunker.” Matt informed him as the Colonel reached him.

“Let’s get them out then.” Weaver said, and immediately started helping them dig out those who were trapped.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Inside the bunker, everyone was scrambling to try and clear the exist so they could get out. It had been a while since they heard the sounds of Mechs, and beamers, and explosions out side, so they all assumed they were safe to leave, if they could only clear the way out after it caved from an explosion. Near the exit, helping to free the path, were Tom, Maggie, and Pope.

“I’m getting so sick of being trapped in collapsed buildings.” Maggie muttered to herself, thinking about what happened in Charleston. Tom however, who was right beside her, heard what she said.

“Yeah, once was enough.” Tom agreed as he helped her move a particular large piece of debris.

“Well, then maybe you should’ve listened to us when we tried to tell Lexi was no good.” Pope commented with a sarcastic tone.

“Shut up Pope. You complaining isn’t helping anyone.” Tom replied angerly, not bothering to look at him.

“I beg to differ Mason, it’s helping me plenty.” Pope objected, and Tom just knew that there was a cocky grin on his face, and all he wanted at that moment was to punch it right off his face.

“You know what else would help? You dead, giving the rest of us more oxygen.” Maggie shot at him with her best death glare. Knowing from the look on the woman’s face that she was dead serious, Pope closed his mouth and went back to work on opening the doorway back up. Tom however, started working even harder in anger and desperation.

“You okay Tom?” Maggie asked quietly, so no one would hear them.

“I’m fine.” The history professor turned President insisted in a tone that made it clear he was lying.

“Hey, we were all wrong about Lexi. It’s not just your fault. I was with her for the last four months, and I didn’t really do anything to help her, neither did Lourdes.” Maggie told him. They all had a part to play, if someone had just kept a closer eye on her, if Lourdes hadn’t convinced everyone that she was some kind of savior, all of this might’ve been avoided.

“Yeah, well, Lourdes got sucked into whatever the h*ll the Espheni were preaching to Lexi. And when Hal tried to warn me, I got mad at him, acted like everything was his fault.” Tom remembered, causing Maggie to wince. She herself felt bad for how they all handled that part of the situation. She was especially feeling guilty because she knew Hal took the blame for something she said, for what she started, and when Hal told her to tell them the truth, she glossed over it and sided with Tom, against Hal.

“You’re not the only one at fault.” Maggie said, regaining Tom’s attention.

“What do you mean?” Tom wondered as he stopped working so he could face her.

“Tom, I’m the one who told everyone about what Lexi was doing, about how she was a threat. It was me who started that riot, not Hal.” Maggie admitted, unable to meet Tom’s eyes. She did watch the older man’s body language though, and saw him kick at a rock in anger.

“Every time it seems like something starts to go our way or we think we know what’s going on, we get knocked back down and blindsided in ways we never see coming.” Tom stated, and Maggie knew he wasn’t just talking about the Espheni and the war.

“I know. But, if we stay down, we never will get everything back to the way we want it.” Maggie hoped that he got the double meaning of her words.

“I know.” Tom said, a bit dejectedly. He moved to get back to helping her clear the doorway when he heard a noise.

“Wait, what’s that?” Maggie moved to get closer to hear whatever Tom was hearing, then moved out of the way as dust and small pieces of debris came down into the room. Along with the noise of rocks and bricks being moved, there was the sound of grunting, and people talking, which were getting louder and louder. Everyone moved out of the way as the people above cleared out the way for them to come outside.

“Thanks guys.” Tom told the people who helped him out of the bunker, quickly recognizing one of the people as his youngest son.

“Dad!” Matt shouted with joy as he ran to his father’s side, wrapping his arms around the older man’s waist.

“Hey Matt, you okay?” Tom wondered, returning the embrace as he looked down at Matt, trying to see any evidence of an injury on him.

“I’m fine. You?” Matt asked, looking up at him, then over at Maggie as she also came out of the bunker.

“Yeah, I’m good.” Tom assured him, then looked up at Weaver and asked “Weaver, how bad is it?”

“Bad, but Tom, there’s something you need to know.” Weaver started, and Tom’s expression turned to one of worry.

“What?” Tom demanded, worried about whatever he was about to find out, and not in the mood to wait.

“Hal’s hurt. He’s in the infirmary.” With those two sentences, those six words, caused Tom’s blood to completely freeze and a feeling of dread to wash over him.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Ben was feeling as though he might fall asleep. While he didn’t need much, if any, sleep due to his spikes, it did happen every now and then, especially after a fight, or something that resulted in a lot of adrenaline and panic. But since he didn’t actually take any part in the fight the 2nd Mass had just been through, he assumed it was because of the adrenaline, or maybe his body was just tired from healing himself after the explosion, even though he wasn’t injured, not majorly anyways.

“Ben!” The blonde teenager turned his head to see his Dad, Matt, and Maggie come rushing inside the building and over to him. He stood up just in time for his Dad to give him a brief but tight hug before pulling away and asking, “Ben, what happened? Where’s Hal? Is he okay?”

“I don’t know. He was in the armoury when it collapsed. Weaver and I dug him out and brought him here. Anne and Kadar were in there with him for awhile. They came out a little while ago, but Anne didn’t have time to say anything, a lot more injured people were being brought in. She did say that he was stable though, but that was it.” Ben informed his father, Matt, and Maggie of all they missed.

“She didn’t say anything else?” Tom questioned, his expression a mix of desperation and fear.

“No.” Ben replied, then asked, “Are you guys okay?”

“Yeah, we’re all fine. Do you know when she’ll be back? Can we go see him?” Tom was quick to come up with more questions.

“I don’t know. I’ve just been waiting out here. I don’t know what to do.” The last sentence Ben said revealed just how helpless he had been feeling ever since he came back to Chinatown to see if completely under attack. His Dad, seeing how he was feeling at the moment, placed his hand on his shoulder.

“It’s okay Ben. Anne will be back soon, hopefully and we’ll know then.” Tom tried to comfort his middle son, who nodded, but didn’t look like he believed him. Ben then sat back down on the chair he hand been sitting on before, Matt sitting down beside him while Maggie paced in small circles and Tom leaned against the wall.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

They waited like that for three hours before Anne came back. Seeing that the entire family was there, a relived smile appeared on her face. Tom, seeing his girlfriend coming, stood up and hugged her, feeling relived himself that she was okay. The relief died in a few seconds as he still had no word about his eldest child.

“How’s Hal?” Tom immediately asked as he pulled away from the doctor.

“I’m going to quickly go check on him, then I’ll be right out to tell you, I promise.” Anne assured him and moved towards the door.

“Okay.” Tom said quietly, and let her pass him.

Entering the room, the door closing by itself behind her, she went over to the table that Hal was still lying on, completely unconscious. The doctor checked his pulse, his breathing, and his blood pressure, which were all normal, before she checked his pupils.

“Oh no.” Anne muttered to herself. She had been hoping that with a few hours to recover from the head injury and the small surgery that his pupil response would be back to normal, but it wasn’t. They were still extremely slow and sluggish. Bracing herself for what she now had to tell Tom, Ben, Matt, and Maggie, Anne walked out of the room.

“Well?” Tom pressed the minute he saw her come out, desperate to know how Hal was doing. His other two sons and Maggie also looked extremely anxious for an answer.

“He’s stable, vitals are good and breathing on his own. He has a few broken and bruised ribs. Lots of other bruises as well from the building collapsing on him, but it could’ve been a lot worse.” Anne assured him, giving him the good, and most important news first.

“So, he’s going to be okay?” Tom concluded.

“While it could’ve been a lot worse, he did sustain a pretty serious head injury. One of the bricks hit him pretty hard in the back of his head, causing a crack in his skull, and it started some internal bleeding. I managed to drain it, but,” Anne paused, unsure of how to say what was concerning her.

“But what?” Tom pressed. Anne took a deep breath, something she had been doing all night, and prepared herself for Tom’s, as well as everyone’s reactions to what she was about to tell them.

“I can’t think of an easy way to say this, so I’m just going to say it. I think Hal is blind.”


	4. Shock

“Blind? But, how?” Tom managed to ask, still shocked over what he just heard.

“It’s called post-traumatic visual loss. Sometimes, when there’s an injury to the back of the head, the body, brain, will go into shock and the person will become blind. If that’s the case, then it’s just temporary. But, the injury was in the occitpal lobe, the part of the brain that controls your vision. Sometimes, if there is enough pressure, it can cause permanent damage, which also could result in blindness.” Anne explained.

“But you said you _think_ he is blind. Is there a chance he’s not?” Tom then questioned, remembering Anne’s exact words.

“We’re going to have to wait until he wakes up to be certain. Right now though, his pupils are extremely slow in responding to light, strongly suggesting that he is. There is a chance that if it is only because of trauma, then it might be gone by the time he wakes up. But if he wakes up blind, then we are going to have to wait to see if it will last or not.” Anne replied.

“And there’s nothing we can do?” Ben wondered, looking desperate and worried. Anne smiled sympathetically, and shook her head.

“Nothing right now. He needs rest.” Anne told them.

“Can we see him?” Tom asked, wanting to see that his son was relatively okay with his own eyes. Anne’s expression turned to one of hesitance, but nodded.

“Um, sure, but I’d prefer if there was only one person in the room. It’s a pretty small room and if Hal does wake up unable to see, more people around will most likely just agitate him.”

“Dad, you go.” Ben said, knowing that his Dad wanted to see Hal. Tom looked over at him, then at Matt and Maggie. Though he could tell they also wanted to see him, they nodded, agreeing with Ben. Without another word, Tom followed Anne into the room.

Anne wasn’t kidding when she said the room was small, especially with the metal table being right in the middle of the room. Tom didn’t pay any attention to the room’s size though, not when he saw his eldest lying on the table. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, but his ribs were wrapped in white bandages. Tom could still see some bruises peeking out under the wrapping though, not to mention the bruises on his arms and the one covering one side of his face.

“He’s so bruised.” Tom stated, shocked to see how injured his son appeared. Slowly, he walked over to Hal’s side, and gently laid his hand over the young man’s limp one.

“Yeah, he was completely buried under the bricks. Though it looks bad, he’s actually pretty lucky. Could’ve broken any number of bones, including his spine, could’ve punctured something. The fact that he only sustained a head injury and two broken ribs is nothing short of a miracle.” Anne tried to assure him. The former professor nodded, but still appeared extremely worried, not that Anne was surprised. She went over to her boyfriend, placed her hand on his shoulder.

“I’ll leave you two alone. I have other patients.” Anne said. She gave Tom a quick peck on his cheek before she turned and left the room. Once she was gone, Tom leaned down so his head was right by Hal’s.

“I’m sorry Hal, so sorry for all of this. I need you to wake up though, so I know you actually hear me.” Tom whispered, bringing his hand up to brush Hal’s black hair away from his face, but Hal gave no sign that he heard him, that he was awake. With a small sigh, Tom ran his hand through his own hair, pressed a kiss on his son’s forehead and sat down in the only chair that was in the room, waiting for Hal to wake up.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

“Where were you anyways?” Matt asked Ben randomly about an hour after their Dad went inside Hal’s room. No one had said anything after their Dad left. Ben let Matt sit in the chair he was previously sitting on while he grabbed another chair, and moved it so he could sit beside his younger brother. Maggie stayed standing, leaning against the wall beside them.

“Um, I was, trying to find and reason with Lexi, to get her to stop this. Didn’t work.” Ben admitted, feeling ashamed that he was off trying and failing to stop the attack, the Espheni did attack and killed who knows how many. Not only that, but when he did come back, all he did was get Hal hurt.

“At least you didn’t get hurt or killed.” Matt whispered, looking over all the injured people, knowing there were more that were also dead. His statement however, only made Ben feel worse, because he alone knew that the only reason he was okay, was because of Hal, who was lying unconscious in the other room, possibly blind.

“Well, you got back in time to free Hal and bring him to Anne. If you were still gone, or if you were with us, who knows what could’ve happened to him.” Maggie told him, seeing how freaked out and guilty he looked.

_If you were still gone, or with your Dad and Matt, then Hal wouldn’t have gone back into the building_ Ben’s conscience reminded him. He took a deep breath, nodding to Maggie’s words. After all, Maggie could be right. If he wasn’t there, maybe Hal would’ve still been in the armoury still packing weapons, unaware of the bombs being dropped. Maybe he himself would’ve gone back to grab the other two bags of weapons. His conscience didn’t agree with him though.

Maggie watched as Ben nodded, but kept his head down, eyes on the floor. There was something else going on, she could tell. Though one could say that he was just really worried about Hal, and she had no doubt he was, but she saw a look of guilt on his face when Matt said, ‘at least you weren’t hurt’. Maggie started racking her brain, trying to think of why that would make him feel guilty, this train of thought distracting her from her own worry over Hal, but she couldn’t really think of anything. Maybe it was because Ben felt like he could’ve helped them, but since he wasn’t there, more people got hurt, or something like that.

With a somewhat answer to her question, her thoughts immediately went back to Hal, her own worry and guilt starting to weigh heavily on her chest. Maggie knew what Lexi was capable of, knew she was potential threat, made sure everyone in Chinatown knew it too, yet when it came time to actually say it to Tom, and to his family, she kept her mouth shut and sided with them. The look on Hal’s face when she did, made her feel sick. The look of betrayal and hurt, knowing that she put it there, made her want to cry.

Even though Hal ended up putting down his gun and joining them in the building with Lexi, they never talked about what happened. As a matter of fact, Hal was pretty quiet. It was like he either didn’t have anything to say, or he felt that if he did say something, he was too scared too, like he knew he would get shot down, and considering what had just happened, he was probably right. Still, even when it was just the two of them watching Lexi, or when they went to Maggie’s room to get some sleep, they never said anything about what happened.

After Lexi turned on them, when they were getting ready for the Espheni attack, and Hal revealed that he was starting to think that they shouldn’t be relying on their emotions anymore, she started to see where he was coming from. After everything that happened with Karen, Maggie wasn’t surprised that he’d be doing his best to keep his emotions from clouding his judgement, not that they ever really talked about what happened with Karen either, and when he mentioned how he was the one to take Anne and Lexi to the skitters, and that everything was his fault, she wanted to hit herself, and him too. Herself for forgetting how Hal blames himself for everything, and Hal for constantly taking the blame for everyone else. That was why she told Tom the truth about what happened, it wasn’t Hal’s fault and she was not going to let him take anymore blame, especially when he didn’t deserve it.

But first, he needed to wake up. Though Anne sounded confident that he would be okay, minus what she said about him being blind, Maggie couldn’t help but worry that he wouldn’t. She hadn’t seen him at all, had no idea what kind of shape he was in, and wanted so badly to barge into the room and see him for herself but held herself back because honestly, she was scared of what she’d find. So she waited along side her boyfriend’s brothers for Hal to wake up.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Tom stayed in the room, watching and waiting for Hal to wake up for 12 hours. The only other person to come in the room was Anne, who, after checking to see how Hal was doing, would try and convince him to take a break, to go get some rest or something to eat, but Tom refused. He had to be here, for his son. A part of him told him that Anne was right, and reminded him that he was the leader of this group and should go out and help them, but he was a father first.

Hal slowly came too. The first thing he became aware of was that his entire body was hurting, and that he was lying on something hard and flat. He didn’t know why though. The last thing he remembered was that he was talking to Maggie as they were getting ready for the Espheni attack. Something must’ve happened, but he simply couldn’t remember. He turned his head and a low groan escaped his lips.

“Hal? Hal, are you awake?” Tom asked as he leant forward and grabbed Hal’s hand, his head turning to face him.

“Dad?” Hal muttered very quietly, his eyes still closed. Everything hurt. There wasn’t any part of his body that wasn’t in any sort of pain. Most of it was dull throbbing, but his ribs and back and head hurt the most. He felt like he had been run over with a car, though he couldn’t remember at all what happened. Maybe he did get hit by a car or something.

“Yeah, I’m right here.” Tom told him with a small smile, squeezing his hand. It was then that Hal opened his eyes. As dark brown eyes stared up at him, there was no recognition in them, no acknowledgement of him seeing anything. Though his eyes remained empty, a look of panic spread across his face.

“Dad, Dad!” Hal cried out, moving his arms to try and find something, anything that might be in the darkness. He opened his eyes expecting to see his father leaning over him, but instead, saw nothing. Just pure blackness.

“It’s okay, I’m right here Hal, I’m right here.” Tom tried to calm him down, knowing exactly what was wrong.

“Dad!” Hal called out again, now panicking enough to shoot up into a sitting position. Tom immediately wrapped arms around Hal and pulled him close, now scared that he might accidentally hurt himself with his flailing around. It was then Hal confirmed what Tom already knew to be true.

“I can’t see. I can’t see.”


	5. Aftermath

It took almost a half hour for Hal to calm down after he woke up and realized that he couldn’t see. Anne was nearby and heard the commotion, and quickly rushed in. Together, she and Tom managed to explain some things to Hal, but they weren’t sure how much of it he heard or understood. Along with the panic, they could tell he was pretty disoriented.

He did manage to calm down though, but the adults could see that he was just bottling it up for the moment, most likely for their sake. Hal was never one to like people worrying or fussing over him. So, Anne told him the basics of what happened, then decided to go inform his brothers and Maggie, who also heard the commotion, of what was going on, and to give Hal time to settle down without people watching. Tom followed behind her.

“So, it’s permanent?” Tom concluded once Anne finished telling everyone what happened with Hal not even an hour ago.

“Not necessarily. As of right now, he is blind, but as to whether or not it stays, we won’t know for at least a few days.” Anne explained to the group.

“What do we do now then?” Ben wondered, hoping that there was something that they could do to help his brother.

“The best thing for Hal right now, is to keep him safe, and relaxed. He’ll heal a lot better and faster if he’s not under any stress.”

“We’re in the middle of a warzone. We just got bombarded. How are we supposed to do that?” Maggie asked with a frustrated tone.

“I don’t really know. But we have to try. Stress is only got to make it worse for him.” Anne told them. Tom sighed, running a hand through his hair as he glanced over at the door that led to Hal’s room. Without another word or thought, he headed over and re-entered his son’s room.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Hal laid wide awake on the table, at least, he thought it was table. It was flat, it was hard, and he was positive it was metal. He couldn’t think of it being anything else but a table. Right after he had woken up and freaked out while his Dad held him, he heard the door burst open and someone come into the room. He knew it was Anne when he heard her voice, but he didn’t really notice amidst his panic over not being able to see anything.

It took a little while for Hal to calm down, and for Anne to somewhat explain what was going on, though he barely heard or understood her. He still had no idea what was going on and was scared out of his mind, but he managed to pull himself together a bit because he knew freaking out wasn’t going to help, no matter how much it was justified. When he did quiet down, his Dad lowered him back onto the table and Anne told him that he injured his head. She then said they would explain everything soon and asked him to try and relax, then they both left the room.

He could tell they didn’t go far. Their voices were just on the other side of the door, but he couldn’t hear what they were saying. Hal knew it was about him and him being blind though. He really wished that they stayed in the room to talk about it though, at least then he’d know what had happened and what was going on. The minute they left though, Hal already had an idea way they left, it was because they wanted to talk about what was going on and figure out what they were going to do before they would tell him, to give themselves time to collect themselves before they explained everything to him. They had done that a lot back in Charleston when he was paralyzed.

Though they might’ve also wanted to give him some privacy and time to calm down himself without an audience, the longer they stayed away, the more panicked he was becoming. He had no idea where he was, no clue if there were other people around him, and no idea what happened. It was like he was literally in a black void and he couldn’t find any way out. He wanted to know what was going on, wanted to know where he was, and he was too scared to try and find out for himself. For all he knew, the ceiling could be only inches above his head and he could be lying on a table outside by a cliff.

Hal was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t even notice that the voices from outside the room fell silent. He did however, hear the door creak open, and footsteps coming towards him. He visibly flinched and instinctively tensed up.

“Easy Hal, it’s just me, you’re okay.” His Dad said, laying his hand over Hal’s. The young man however jerked his hand away and shook his head.

“No, I’m not Dad. I can’t see anything. I don’t even know where I am.” Hal’s words came out fast in a panicked tone.

“You’re in the infirmary. I know you’re scared, but it’s going to be okay.” Tom assured him, moving to place his hand on Hal’s shoulder to try and comfort him. But the minute Hal felt it, he shrugged his shoulder, clearly wanting Tom to remove it, and so against his fatherly instincts, he did.

“You don’t know that.” Hal pointed out. Again, the father moved to hold his son’s hand, but, knowing from his son’s reactions that Hal didn’t want to be touched, Tom placed his hand on the table right by Hal’s shoulder, his fingers barely touching him, just so that Hal knew he was there. The young man didn’t protest to that.

“Hal,” Tom started, only to stop when he couldn’t figure out what to say. So much had happened over the last few days, so much needed to be said, but the father had no idea where to start. Luckily, Anne decided to appear at that moment. Hal again flinched at the noise, his entire body tensing even more than it already was upon realizing that someone else was in the room.

“It’s just Anne Hal.” Tom told him, trying to keep his son calm and relaxed, hoping that Hal would realize that he was safe. Anne slowed her stride a little, quickly realizing what was going on. She made her way over to Hal’s side, opposite of Tom, gently laid her hand on her patient’s shoulder so he’d know where she was, before removing it.

“Hey Hal. I know you’re still a little freaked out, and that’s completely okay, but do you think you can answer some questions?” Anne wondered, her voice gentle and soft as she came to Hal’s side. Slowly, the young man nodded, his unseeing eyes staring up at the ceiling.

“Okay. We’ll start easy, what’s your name?” Anne asked.

“Hal Mason.” Hal answered with no hesitation. The second he heard her question, he knew what she was doing. She had already told him earlier that he had hurt his head, and now she was trying to see if there were any problems with his mental state, as it was already obvious there was something wrong with his physical state.

“Good, do you know who is touching your right shoulder?” The doctor asked the next question.

“My Dad.” Tom gave Hal a small smile instinctively, even though he knew Hal wouldn’t, couldn’t, see it. Anne’s smile grew a little more again as she heard Hal’s answer.

“That’s right. Do you remember what happened?” Anne’s voice took a more serious tone with that question.

“No.” Hal replied, slightly shaking his head.

“What is the last thing that you remember?” Anne wondered.

“We were getting ready for an attack. There were skitters and Mechs coming our way. That’s it.” Hal revealed.

“That’s okay. We were attacked Hal. They ended up dropping bombs on us. You were in the armoury, and the building collapsed on you, and you got hit in the head by a brick. It caused a bleed in your skull. I was able to drain it, but it put a lot of pressure and possibly damaged your occipital lobe, that’s the part of your brain that control your vision. That’s why you can’t see.” Anne explained. Hal didn’t say or do anything for a moment as he processed everything she said.

“You said possibly? What does that mean? Is it only temporary?” Hal asked, head turning slightly in Anne’s direction.

“There is a chance that yes, it will go away and you will regain your sight, but there is also a chance this is permanent.” Anne informed him.

“How long, until we know?” Hal wondered.

“A few days, about a week. If nothing changes by then, it’s most likely not going to get better.” Hal nodded and turned his head back so, if he could see, would be staring straight up at the ceiling.

“Hal, I know that this is a lot to take in, but there are some people who’d like to come,” Anne paused, stopping herself from saying the word ‘see’, not wanting to make Hal uncomfortable or anything, and quickly thought of a different word instead, “visit you. Are you up to that?”

For a moment, Hal didn’t say or do anything. He knew who Anne was talking about, and knew that they were probably already aware of what was wrong with him and would probably treat him like glass.

_At least I can’t see their pity-filled expressions_ , Hal thought to himself. He did want to see them, and not just literally. He had to make sure they were okay. So, despite the fact that he had already tired himself out with all the panicking he had been doing earlier, Hal nodded.

“Okay, I’ll go get them.” Anne said, then he heard her leave the room. The only sounds in the room were of his Dad’s breathing. Hal knew he was still beside him, could feel his fingers against his shoulder. Though a part of him was glad that his Dad was there, a larger, louder, part of him wanted his Dad gone. It didn’t seem right to him, that his Dad could go from yelling at him, blaming him, accusing him, to suddenly being worried about him. He was too tired, and too freaked out, he couldn’t risk accepting his Dad’s comfort only to be rejected later.

“Hal?” The young man flinched at the voice. He had been so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t hear anyone coming into the room, though he smiled when he recognized Matt’s voice.

“Hey buddy. How are you doing?” Hal asked, feeling Matt’s smaller hand slid into his left one and squeeze it gently. Hal squeezed back.

“I’m fine. Are you okay?” Matt wondered, worry practically dripping from his voice.

“Don’t worry about me Matt, I’ll be okay.” Hal told him, then felt another hand on his left leg, just above his knee, and knew exactly whose it was, “Maggie?”

“Right here Hal.” Hal’s smile grew slightly at the sound of her voice.

“You okay?” Hal asked her.

“I’m alright.” She replied.

“Don’t worry Hal, we’re all okay.” Hal heard Ben speak up. He wondered if Ben was in the room, but wasn’t sure as he didn’t hear him until now.

“Ben?” The oldest brother called out quietly.

“Yeah, I’m here too.” Ben confirmed by his spot by the door. He watched his older brother nod, letting him know that he heard him, but didn’t say anything else, and neither did anyone else. Instead, they all watched Hal with mixed emotions, though it was mostly relief and worry. Ben however, watched with guilt, knowing that the reason Hal was staring up at the ceiling, not even seeing it, was because of him. The longer he watched, the worse the guilt became.

They were only in the room with Hal for a few minutes before Anne started to notice that Hal was having a hard time staying awake. His breathing had started becoming deeper, like he was taking deep breaths to keep himself awake, and whenever he blinked, his eyelids remained closed longer than they should.

“Come on guys, let’s let him get some sleep.” Anne ordered. Ben was grateful when he heard that, unable to stand how badly hurt his brother looked and was the first one out the door, though he tried to go naturally so no one would notice how much he wanted to leave. Matt gave Hal’s hand one more squeeze before he let Anne led him out of the room.

“We’ll come back soon Hal, promise. Love you.” Maggie told him, lowering her head so it was just hovering over his.

“Love you too.” Hal whispered, knowing that she was really close, as he could feel her breath on his face. He then felt her lips against his cheek before she pulled away and he heard her quiet footsteps heading away from him. Once she was gone, Hal felt his Dad put his hand on his shoulder, drawing his attention to him.

“It’s going to be okay son, no matter what happens, we’ll get through this.” His Dad said. Hal nodded, though he couldn’t really bring himself to actually agree with him. He then felt his Dad give him a kiss on his forehead, before he heard his footsteps leaving the room. Knowing he was now all alone, Hal closed his eyes, not that it made any difference to him as all he saw was darkness, and let his exhaustion pull him under.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

After they all left the room so Hal could get some rest, Tom found himself walking outside of the infirmary and leaned back against the wall. It was sometime in the afternoon, he could tell that much, but wasn’t exactly sure of the time. For a moment, he just stood there and breathed, releasing all the tension and panic he had felt over the last few days. For now, there was no attack happening, and his sons were alive. Yes, Hal might be blind, but at least he was alive, Tom forced himself to remember.

It was at that moment that Tom saw Weaver out of the corner of his eye. Weaver, also seeing that Tom was outside, started walking towards him. Ever since he helped free him, Maggie, and the others trapped down in the bunker, he had been helping everyone else he could find along with getting a barricade up to protect their base. He hadn’t seen any of the Masons until now.

“Hey Tom. How is he?” Weaver asked as he approached his friend. Tom didn’t need Weaver to tell him who he was talking about.

“Not good. I mean, he isn’t on death’s door or anything but he’s,” Tom stopped, unable to say the word, still having trouble comprehending it.

“He’s what Tom?” Weaver pushed when he saw the professor hesitate.

“He’s blind.” Seeing the Colonel’s shocked expression Tom continued, “When he got hit in the head, it cracked his skull and started an internal bleed, and he’s blind. We don’t know if it’s permanent or not.”

“I’m sorry Tom.” Weaver replied sympathetically.

“It’s not your fault. It’s mine. I shouldn’t have put so much trust in Lexi.” Tom objected, looking down at the ground.

“Lexi made her choice. You aren’t responsible for her actions.” Weaver pointed out. Tom didn’t say anything or gave any sign that he heard or acknowledged him.

“So, how bad is it?” Tom changed the subject, not wanting to debate this right now. He was barely holding his emotions in and knew he wouldn’t be able to handle much more.

“25 confirmed dead, so far. We’re still digging. We lost Tector.” Weaver informed him.

“Oh man.” Tom groaned. So many people dead, including one who was close to his family, close to Hal. And it was all because he made a promise he couldn’t keep, because he refused to even consider that his daughter wasn’t on their side.

“You should go get some rest, maybe something to eat. You’re going to need your energy for the days ahead. We all will.” Tom nodded at that, but didn’t make any move to do it. Weaver then bent down a little and placed his hand on Tom’s shoulder, finally causing the former teacher to look at him.

“Hal’s a fighter Tom. If anyone is going to get through this, it’s him.” Weaver encouraged, giving the other man a small smile.

“And if he doesn’t?” Tom wondered, still looking up at his friend. Weaver let the smile drop and sighed.

“Then we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Now, go get some rest. You look like you’re about to collapse.” With that, the military leader walked away, probably to get back to work. Tom knew he should go get some sleep, that he hadn’t slept in at least 36 hours, but there was too much to do. He couldn’t just go get some rest while everyone else worked. So, with one last look at the infirmary, Tom turned and headed off to see what he could do to help.


	6. Safe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel I should let you guys know that I have never met anyone who was blind, so I’m kind of going with my imagination, books and stories I’ve read, and from watching the Miracle Worker a couple of times (really love that movie). So if I get anything wrong, I’m sorry. And without further adieu, here is chapter 6.

Tom spent the rest of the day helping the other members of the 2nd Mass clean up the lose debris, build up the barricade, and search for any missing and injured members. When night fell, everyone was on edge, expecting another attack, but luckily, none came. Tom then made his way back to the infirmary to check on Hal.

Hal was still sleeping, apparently had stayed asleep the entire time he was gone. Tom was only with him for a few minutes before Anne came in. She assured him that Hal was fine, and practically ordered him to go get some rest. Very reluctantly, and only with the promise that Anne would come get him if there was any change in his son’s condition, Tom left to finally get some sleep.

The next morning, after a quick bit to eat, Tom again headed to the infirmary to check on Hal. When he opened the door to the room though, he found it was completely empty. Trying to keep from panicking, he turned his head, quickly spying Anne, just about to leave one of her patients.

“Anne.” Tom called. The doctor immediately looked up at him and came over as Tom asked, “Where’s Hal?”

“Over here. I figured he’d be more comfortable on a gurney then a metal table.” Anne said as she led him to the far back corner of the room that was hidden by a large curtain. Tom pulled the curtain back a little to see Hal lying down on the bed, seemingly fast asleep.

“How’s he doing?” Tom wondered, still keeping his eyes on his son.

“Better, I think. He still can’t see anything, but is a lot less panicked now, and is getting a lot of rest, which is good.” Anne informed him. The Father nodded and walked into the makeshift room, letting the curtain fall back.

As he approached the bed, Tom stared at his son. Hal was now wearing a grey T-shirt which covered most of the bruises, though he could still see the ones on his arms. The rest of him was covered in a blanket. Spying a chair on the other side of the bed, Tom went over and sat down, placing his hand over Hal’s. However, the minute his hand touched his son’s, his eyes shot open and immediately became tense.

“Easy Hal, it’s just me.” Tom informed him, squeezing Hal’s hand.

“Dad?” Hal questioned, turning his head towards the sound of the voice. He was positive that it was his father’s, but without his eyesight, he doubted everything around him now. He couldn’t help it. He wasn’t used to relying on his hearing like this.

“Yeah. How are feeling?” Tom asked.

“I’m alright.” Hal answered, the lie sliding easily through his lips. Lying to his Dad had never been all that hard because when his Dad got the answer he wanted to hear, he never pushed to see if it was a lie or not, at least, not with him. If it was Ben or Matt, then he would look harder, but it was always as though his Dad didn’t want there to be a problem with him, not that Hal would say anything either. His Dad had enough on his plate without his issues to add to it.

“Good.” Hal heard his Dad reply. It was the answer he expected, but he thought he caught a bit of doubt among the relieved tone. Not wanting to give the leader a chance to question it, Hal changed the subject.

“It’s bad out there, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is. 27 dead.” Tom stopped, second guessing his decision to tell his son about his friend, but again realizing that he had a right to know, and would want too, Tom added, “I’m sorry Hal, but Tector is one of them.”

For a long moment, Hal didn’t say anything, didn’t do anything. His blind eyes stared up at the ceiling uselessly, though he kept blinking and Tom knew it was because he was trying to push back any and every emotion he was feeling right now. A pang of guilt hit Tom in his chest at the realization.

“Hal?” Tom whispered, slightly scared of what his son’s response would be. When the young man still said nothing, Tom repeated, “I’m really sorry Hal.”

“It’s not your fault.” Hal replied with a tightly controlled tone as the voice in his head said, _Your right. It’s yours_.

Knowing that his father was probably about to object and possibly get out how it was actually Hal’s fault, he said, “I’m pretty tired Dad.”

“That’s alright. Go back to sleep then.” Hal felt his Dad place his other hand on his shoulder as he said that, and Hal let his eyelids close. As he started to drift off, the hand moved up to his forehead, brushing away the strands of hair that were falling onto his face.

Tom sighed when he saw that Hal was once again asleep. Though a part of him wanted to talk to him, apologize to him for everything that happened, he knew that he needed rest in order to get better. He’d rather have his son angry at him then him getting worse. Besides, it would only be for a few days. Once Hal was better, he’d talk to him again.

For a few minutes, Tom kept brushing Hal’s hair away from his forehead. He did it a lot when Hal was younger, Ben and Matt too. The last time he did this for Hal though was when he woke paralyzed, it was the only comforting act that he could feel. Even then though, it didn’t last long as Hal started viewing it as a form of pity. So Tom did it when he was asleep instead.

Suddenly, Hal shifted and turned his head in the other direction. Tom paused as his son moved, and let his hand fall onto the mattress. Even in his sleep, Hal was pulling away from him, just like he did yesterday. As much as it hurt, he knew that he deserved it. After everything that happened, after how he acted, after everything he said, he couldn’t blame Hal being upset with him, for wanting nothing to do with him.

There was a huge wall between them that had been years in the making. Tom had no idea when it started, it was well before the invasion, that was for sure. At times, he would try to cross it, and sometimes he’d succeed, at least, he thought he did. Honestly, there times he could never tell. Hal was so much like Rebecca, whenever something bad happened to him, or was bugging him, he would often keep his mouth shut, and that tendency got worse after the invasion.

When the aliens attacked and Rebecca was killed, it had been hard on all of them, especially when Ben was only taken days later. Hal had really stepped up, trying to be there for him and his youngest brother. Tom also tried harder to be there for his sons and to protect him, unable to stand the thought that he might lose them too. As the war went on, there were times when Tom felt like he and Hal had gotten closer and there were times that he realized how big that wall between them had really become. And after everything that happened over the last few days, it seemed completely impassable.

The father was so lost in these thoughts that he didn’t hear his middle son approach.

“Dad?” Tom looked up to see Ben come into the makeshift room as he asked, “How is he?”

“Okay, I think. Anne says he’s been getting a lot of rest which is good, and he’s calmed down a bit.” Tom informed the teenager. Ben nodded, staring silently at his older brother.

Tom watched Ben, though he was completely unaware of it. The blonde just stared at Hal with a display of mixed emotions on his face. Tom easily identified the worry and understood the reason behind it, he was worried too, but he wasn’t sure why there seemed to be so much guilt in his son’s eyes.

“Are you alright Ben?” Tom wondered, carefully watching Ben’s reaction. It was immediate. The blonde instantly tensed up, jaw clenching as he slowly turned to face his Dad.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” Ben questioned, tone completely devoid of emotion. His poker face was almost perfect if it wasn’t for the tiny sliver of fear his light brown eyes.

“Because you’re acting strange, and you’ve been avoiding all of us. Don’t think I haven’t noticed.” Tom answered. Ben turned his head away and clenched his fists. Tom quickly saw it and said, “It’s okay if you aren’t alright Ben, you’ve been through a lot, we all have.”

“I said I’m fine Dad, okay? I’m not the one who got hurt and can’t see.” Ben pointed out, louder than he was speaking before. He didn’t realize how loud or strong his voice was until he heard a soft moan come from Hal as he turned his head in his direction. Ben waited to see if Hal had woken up, but when he didn’t make another move or sound, Ben turned back to his Dad.

“I’m actually on sentry duty soon. I’ll see you later.” The middle Mason son didn’t give his Father a chance to stop him as he rushed out of the makeshift room and out of the building.

Tom sighed, and looked back down at his oldest. It was bad enough that Hal was pulling away from him, but now Ben was too. He already had an idea what was going on with Hal, but he never saw this sudden problem with Ben coming. Usually it was the other way around, as the blonde was far more open with him then his older brother, and Tom had no idea what to do. He had no idea what was going on with Ben, and was therefore unable to help him, had no idea how to get Hal to open up to him or how to help him get through this injury, and no idea how to help the 2nd Mass after the betrayal of his daughter. He had no clue, and that terrified him.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

The minute Maggie had some spare time, she went to the infirmary to see Hal. She had been busy along with everyone else who wasn’t injured cleaning up the mess of the attack and building a barricade. Having been informed that Hal was moved to a different spot, she knew exactly where to find him. She walked past the curtain, letting it close behind her and knew Hal was awake when his eyes opened and his head turned slightly in her direction.

“Hey Hal.” Maggie said, letting him know that someone was in the room with him, her voice quiet so she wouldn’t startle him.

“Maggie.” Hal said with more certainty than he did yesterday. He was starting to get better at recognizing people’s voices. Maggie smiled and sat down on the edge of the bed, grabbing his hand as she did so.

“How are you feeling?” Maggie asked.

“I’d be feeling a lot better if I could actually see you.” Hal replied. His tone was light-hearted, but she could hear a small amount of frustration in it as well.

“I know. But besides that?” Maggie pushed a little, not at all surprised that Hal was frustrated by what had happened to him. He was an active guy, a fighter. And now, that could all be taken away, or not. They didn’t know, which made it worse.

“Still a little sore, but I’m alright.” Hal assured her. ‘A little sore’ was putting it mildly though. He thought he felt terrible last night, but today, he felt as though his entire body had been run over by a monster truck, at least 10 times.

“Good.” Maggie wasn’t convinced, having remembered how bruised he was the night before and knew that he would be feeling worse today, but she didn’t push it, not wanting to make him angry and defensive. Though he hadn’t said anything, she knew that she had hurt him when she sided with his family against him, and didn’t want to make it worse.

“Actually, do you think you can do something for me?” Hal wondered as he pushed himself up into a sitting position.

“Anything.” Maggie replied instantly.

“Do you think you could convince Anne to let me out of the infirmary?” Hal asked, a somewhat hopeful look on his face.

“What do you mean? Like, go out for some fresh air and a walk or something?” Maggie questioned, trying to understand what Hal was asking, though she was pretty sure she knew what he meant.

“No, I mean, I don’t want to stay here.” Hal answered, turning his head away from her. He couldn’t see her, but he didn’t want her to see the look he was positive was covering his face.

“Hal, you were injured not even 48 hours ago. It’s crazy outside right now, and, you can’t see. The infirmary is the best place for you.” Maggie told him, though was not at all shocked that he didn’t want to be in the infirmary. He was just like her in that sense, though for different reasons. She hated it because it reminded her too much of her time in the hospital when she had cancer, he hated it because he felt useless.

“I have no idea where I am Maggie, do you understand me? I was never in this building before. I have no idea what anything looks like, no idea who’s around me, for all I know I could actually be on the edge of a cliff.” Even though the idea of Hal actually being on a cliff sounded ridiculous, Maggie understood what he was saying.

“Oh.” Maggie replied, trying to imagine what it was actually like for Hal now.

“Yeah. And it’s always so loud in here. I barely actually sleep.” Hal added, not wanting Maggie to realize how terrified he actually was that he couldn’t see anything.

For a long moment, she didn’t say anything, and Hal became worried that Maggie was about to say no, but instead said, “I’ll talk to Anne, see if we can think up something.”

“Thanks.” Hal said, holding her hand tightly in his, lowering his head a little as though to look at their entwined hands.

“For the record though, you aren’t on the edge of a cliff.” Maggie told him, hoping that it would ease the tension. She knew it did when Hal smiled and let out a small chuckle. Realizing that though he couldn’t see where he was, it could help if she described where he was instead.

“You’re in the corner of a large room. It’s curtained off, so you have some privacy. The curtain’s blue if you’re wondering. And besides there being your bed, and a chair on your right, your room is empty.” Maggie described to him, watching as he turned his head as though to look around the room even though he couldn’t actually see, “Does that help at least?”

“It does, thank you.” Hal replied, turning his head to look down at his lap, squeezing her hand tightly. 

“Hey.” Maggie whispered, placing two of her fingers under his chin to lift up his head so she could look at his face. His blind eyes stared straight at her, waiting for her to say or do something. Maggie leaned forward and pressed her lips against his in a gentle kiss, one he immediately returned. They pulled away when they both heard Hal’s stomach grumble.

“Hungry are we?” Maggie asked with a light-hearted laugh.

“A little.” Hal admitted with a smile on his face, head turned downwards again. He couldn’t remember when he last ate. It was before the Espheni attack, but after that, he supposed he was busy fighting until he got hurt. And since then, he had spent the majority of time sleeping.

“I’ll be right back.” Maggie told him as she got up off the bed and headed out of the building.

Luckily, it was almost lunch and since she was taking it to an injured soldier, she got first dibs on the food, which happened to only be porridge. Taking the bowl in her hands, she headed back to the infirmary, passing the other injured members that were in the main room chatting with their friends and walked to the curtained off area, moving it so she could enter Hal’s make shift room.

“Hope you’re in the mood for porridge, cause that’s about all we have at the moment.” Maggie said as she sat down on the side of the bed and placed the bowl in his hands.

When she saw him use his hand to feel the bowl and to find the spoon, she mentally kicked herself. She forgot that since he couldn’t see, he would have to use his hands to find out where everything is. She hoped he would be able to eat it. He would hate it if he would need someone to help him. It was one of the things he hated most while he was paralyzed.

“Um, a little closer.” Maggie told him as he lifted the spoon and tried to get it to his mouth, parting his lips even though it was a few inches away.

Hal listened to her and brought it closer, accidently touching his upper lip before he lowered it more and got it his mouth. He put the empty spoon in the bowl, wiped his mouth with his wrist, then picked up the now full spoon again. He lifted it up and started bringing closer to him, unknowingly moving it his shoulder.

“Here.” Maggie said as she wrapped her hand around the one Hal was using to hold the spoon, and guided it to his mouth. He ate it, then lowered his hand again with more force, a frustrated expression on his face.

“It’s okay Hal, this is all still new to you. You’ll get it.” Maggie comforted him.

Hal didn’t say or do anything, trying to keep a handle on the anger that was starting to build up inside of him. He hated this, hated not being able to see. He thought that he would be able to handle any injury after being paralyzed because he couldn’t even think of any possible injury he could get that would be worse than that. Not being to move, fight, defend himself, even eat, but being blind brought a whole different set of problems, and it was only day one. He couldn’t fly off the handle already, so he nodded and went to try again, but stopped when he heard voices laughing.

“Hey, the curtain’s closed, they can’t see you. They aren’t laughing at you.” Maggie assured him, quickly realizing why Hal had suddenly stopped. Hal didn’t say anything, he just held out the bowl to her, and instinctively, she grabbed it.

“You need to eat more than that.” Maggie told Hal, looking at the still full bowl.

“I lost my appetite.” Hal said quietly with a little bitterness. He quickly realized how he sounded and said, “Sorry, I’m just, just tired is all.”

Maggie knew that that wasn’t the only reason. She knew that the real reason was that he was probably already feeling frustrated and embarrassed that he couldn’t even eat without help. The same thing happened when he was paralyzed almost a year ago in Charleston. So, despite the fact the he needed to eat, Maggie let it go, for now at least.

“Get some rest then.” Maggie told him in a gentle tone. Hal nodded and laid back down on the thin mattress as he closed his eyes. He was asleep in minutes.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Once Hal fell asleep, Maggie pulled his blanket up higher to cover him more, then headed out of the ‘room’, making sure the curtain closed behind her. Spying Anne a few feet away, talking to a soldier lying on one of the many cots that filled the room, she placed the bowl on a bedside table before she made her way over to her friend.

“Anne.” Maggie called out quietly as she reached Anne, who turned around when she heard someone call her name.

“Hey Maggie, what can I do for you?” Anne wondered as she started heading towards another one of her patients.

“I was wondering, does Hal have to be in here?” Maggie asked as gently as possibly while she followed the doctor.

“What do you mean?” Anne questioned, stopping in her tracks and turning to give Maggie her full attention.

“I was talking to him and, he wants to leave the infirmary, as in, go to a different room or building or something.”

“He had a bad head injury Maggie, he can’t see. He wouldn’t be safe out there unless someone was with him and with everything going on, we can’t guarantee that someone can be. The infirmary is the safest place for him, not to mention we can monitor him better here.”

“But, since he can’t see, he’s relying on his memory to tell him where he is and what’s going on. He’s never been this building before. You can tell him he’s in the infirmary all you want, but that’s not actually going to help him. You said we had to keep him calm and stress free. Being in here, isn’t going to do that. And with people coming in and out constantly, he’s on edge.” Maggie tried to explain.

“Well, do you have any ideas?” Anne asked, not denying that Maggie had a point, but she couldn’t see any alternative.

“What if he moved into my room? He’s been in there before, it’s a different building, more privacy, quieter.” Maggie suggested. Anne didn’t say anything for a minute, debating if it was a good idea.

“I’ll think about it, but for now, it’s better if he stays here.” Anne finally answered. When she walked over to one of her many patients, Maggie knew that was the only answer she was going to get for now. She then headed back over to Hal’s ‘room’, sitting down on the chair beside his bed and kept watch over him until she had to go out on patrol.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

_“Hello?” Hal called out, walking forward blindly. Everything was black, he couldn’t see anything. He had his arms outstretched, trying to feel if there was anything or anyone ahead of him, or around him. So far, he had touched nothing but air._

_Suddenly hearing quiet voices somewhere nearby, Hal again called out, “Hello? Who’s there?”_

_The voices became louder, and Hal was pretty sure that he was walking closer, towards them, but they didn’t answer him. He kept moving, trying to find someone, wanting someone to find and help him, he had never felt so lost. The sound of people talking immediately died down all of a sudden, and loud gunfire took its place._

_Hal instinctively ducked down, though he couldn’t see if he was actually being shot at or not. The sound grew louder and louder. Hal wanted to run, but he couldn’t see anything. Then, something hard and heavy hit his shoulder, forcing him down to his knees. He cried out in shock and pain, but didn’t have time of anything else as another heavy object hit him in the back, then another, and another until he was lying flat on his back. His pain-filled scream was cut off when one hit him hard in the head._

“AH!” Hal screamed as he shot up, ignoring his ribs painfully protesting his sudden movements. The fear of the nightmare became worse when he saw nothing but blackness, completely forgetting that he was blind.

“Hal!” Hal heard Anne call out his name as he struggled to breathe.

“Anne?” Hal managed to reply, still unable to control his breathing. He then felt his mattress dip under someone’s weight.

“Yeah, it’s me.” Anne confirmed as she wrapped his arms around him and pulled him close, whispering, “You’re alright Hal. Everything’s okay, it was just a dream Hal. Just a dream.”

“No it’s not. I can’t see where I am, I can’t see who’s around. I can’t see anything.” Hal told her, tears making their way down his cheeks as the fear completely took him over. He had been trying to hide it ever since Anne and his Dad told him what had happened and why he couldn’t see, but with the nightmare completely knocking his walls down, he couldn’t do it anymore.

Anne grimaced sympathetically as Hal continued shaking in her arms, her shoulder getting wet with his tears. It was late, well past midnight. He had been sleeping on and off, but had never woken up like this before, though she had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before the nightmares started. His terrified and panicked tears were coming fast and hard, but were also coming silently, just like Hal always was when he was suffering.

“I know, I know. But you are safe, I promise. You’re safe.” Anne assured him. Hal didn’t say anything, too busy trying to stop himself from crying, but did wrap his own arms around Anne, returning her embrace.

When Anne felt Hal latch on to her, a tear of her own slipped past her eyelashes, running freely down her face. Maggie was right, Hal was too stressed out, too panicked to stay in the infirmary, a place he didn’t know and wasn’t familiar with. She had thought that since Hal seemed calm, and hadn’t said anything to her that he would be alright, but no, she was wrong. As soon as Hal told her that he wasn’t okay, she made her choice. In the morning, she would help Maggie move Hal to her bedroom.


	7. Fear

Early the next morning, Hal found himself being led by Maggie out of the infirmary towards her room. He kept his head down, partly so people wouldn’t really notice him, not wanting to be the center of any attention, but also because Anne said to keep his eyes away from bright lights. Apparently, even though he couldn’t see anything, the light could still hurt his eyes.

Hal wished Maggie would walk faster. There was a chance he might be a little paranoid, but he could’ve sworn he heard people whispering, and could feel their eyes on him. He wasn’t sure how long they walked until he heard the creaking of a door opening and felt himself stepping onto a wooden surface instead of the rough, uneven ground that was outside. They kept walking about another 20 feet before Hal heard another door open, and they walked through the doorway. He felt Maggie turn to shut the door, then felt her hand squeeze his.

“We’re here.” Maggie said quietly. Hal raised his head, trying to remember what the room looked like, then took a step forward.

“There’s a dresser on the right, and the bed is in front of me, right?” Hal questioned, turning his head in Maggie’s direction. Maggie smiled and nodded instinctively, placing her free hand on his shoulder.

“Yeah, that’s right. Take another eight to ten steps forward and you’ll hit the foot of the bed.” Maggie confirmed, coming to stand behind him.

She stood up on her tiptoes to give him a quick peck on his cheek, then pressed her forehead against his shoulder. Hal turned his head even more so he could give her a small kiss on her head, then turned it back so he would’ve been looking straight ahead and started walking forward. He didn’t stop until he felt the end of the bed against his knees. When that happened, Hal turned around and sat down on the mattress.

Maggie waited until he sat down before she came forward, placing both her hands on his shoulders. When he raised his head, she asked, “So, is this better?”

Hal hesitated for a moment, then nodded, “Yeah, this is a lot better.”

Though everything was still pitch black to him, he did like this place more than the infirmary. It was a lot quieter, more private, but more importantly, he knew what the room looked like. He knew where everything was, he knew where he was.

Maggie looked around the room. There was only one window, right over the bed, but barely any light was coming through since she pinned up a blanket over it so the light wouldn’t hurt Hal’s eyes. The bed was somewhat made, and the night stands were empty. It wasn’t like she had that much stuff, not with a war going on, but the little she had she put away, not wanting to take the chance that Hal might accidentally trip or hurt himself.

After she had finished taking stock of the room, she looked back over at Hal. He had lowered his head into his hand, his thumb and index finger rubbing his temples.

“You’re head still hurting?” Maggie asked as she came over to the bed sat down beside him.

“A little. Anne said it was normal though.” Hal replied, lifting his head up and letting his hand fall down onto his lap.

“Want me to go see if Anne can give you any painkillers?” Maggie wondered, hating that he was in any sort of pain, but Hal shook his head.

“No, I’m fine. Besides, Anne said she’ll come check on me later. Part of the deal, remember?” Hal reminded her.

That morning, when Anne informed them that Hal could leave the infirmary, she revealed that there would be some conditions. One, that she would check up on him at least once a day, she was still worried about his head injury. Two, that someone would always have to stay with him, again because of the head injury. Hal fought that condition a little bit, but with the fact that he was blind and couldn’t see his surroundings, it wasn’t safe for him to be alone, not with weapons around and the possibility of being attacked by aliens. And when Anne brought his Dad into the conversation, Hal had no chance of winning the argument, so he agreed.

“Okay. Maybe you should get some rest.” Maggie then suggested, gently rubbing his back in an effort to comfort him.

“I’m bored of resting, that’s all I’ve been doing, but I’m still tired. How does that work?” Hal questioned, turning to look at her, though his eyes remained blank.

“You went through, and are still going through a trauma Hal. Not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. You need sleep, and you’ll have a better chance of getting that here where it’s quieter.” Maggie told him. Hal nodded, and was about to lie down when he heard the door open.

“Hey Matt.” Maggie said with a smile when she saw Hal’s youngest brother coming into the room.

“Hey. How you doing Hal?” Matt asked, coming further into the room, though he stayed a few feet away, watching his older brother with concern. Hal didn’t look very good. His skin was pale and his eyes were blank, not at all like they used to be. Matt hated it.

“I’m alright buddy.” Hal replied, smiling, hoping it was at his brother than a wall or something. Neither Maggie nor Matt pointed out that Hal was lying. It was too soon after, everything, for Hal to be okay, but they didn’t say anything as they could tell that Hal would just blow them off and get defensive.

“I have to go on patrol. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Maggie revealed. She gave Hal a quick peck on his temple, then stood up and left the room.

Once she was gone, Matt slowly came over to his brother and sat down on the bed beside him, right in the spot where Maggie was previously sitting. The two brothers sat together in silence, neither really knowing what to say. Matt, desperate for the silence to end, repeated his earlier question.

“How are you doing?” Hal smiled, and slowly placed his hand on Matt’s back.

“I’m still alright Matt. What about you? Are you okay?” Hal asked, turning his head so he would be looking down at his little brother. He wished he could see Matt’s face, but he knew from years of memories and experiences what expression was on his baby brother’s face.

“Yeah, I’m okay.” Matt answered, not putting any effort to convince his older brother.

“Matt, come on, it’s me. What’s going on?” Hal pushed, moving his hand that was still on Matt’s back to place it on his shoulder, squeezing it gently.

“I’m sorry.” Matt suddenly apologized, his voice breaking in the process.

“For what?” Hal asked, his own voice soft and confused. What did his little brother have to apologize for. He hadn’t done anything, not that Hal knew about anyways. Did something happen?

“I knew that it was getting bad, between you and Dad, but I didn’t do anything. I didn’t even try to listen what you saying. If I had, maybe I could’ve helped, maybe Dad wouldn’t have trusted Lexi and we wouldn’t be in this mess.” Matt explained. Hal wrapped his arm around Matt’s shoulder and pulled him close.

“No buddy, this isn’t your fault. There was nothing you could’ve done. You have nothing to feel sorry for. None of this, not the attack, not me getting hurt, is your fault. You did nothing wrong.” Hal insisted, turning on the bed so he could better hug his brother. Matt was quick to return the hug, now completely breaking down in sobs.

For a few minutes, Hal just held him tightly in his arms as the sound of his youngest brother crying filled his ears. He could feel the kid shaking in the embrace, his shirt getting wet with Matt’s tears. When the shaking slowed and the sobs died down, Hal decided to say something, but Matt beat him to it.

“What if you don’t get better?” Hal felt his chest tighten at Matt’s question. He had been asking himself the very same question ever since he realized why he was blind and the possibility that it might only be temporary, but he had no answer for himself. For Matt however, he did.

“Even if I don’t end up getting my sight back Matt, I’ll be okay. I may not be able to fight, but I will still be here, with you, and Dad, and Ben. I promise, I’m not going anywhere.” Hal assured Matt. The younger Mason nodded against his big brother’s shoulder, tears reappearing in his eyes.

What the two brothers were unaware of, was that their other brother was standing just outside the door, using his super hearing to listen to every word they exchanged. Ben had stayed up al night, trying to decide if he should tell Hal about how he actually got injured, and when he finally concluded that Hal deserved to know the truth, he went to the infirmary only to find out that his big brother had moved back into Maggie’s room. When he arrived at the door, he heard Matt crying, and stopped himself from entering, instead, eavesdropping to find out what was wrong with his little brother.

Hearing his baby brother break down in fear over what was happening to Hal made the already unbearable ball of guilt in his stomach somehow intensify. It wasn’t just Hal who had been affected by Ben’s stupid decision to head back into the armoury. Matt was too, as was their Dad, and Maggie.

Not wanting to intrude on his brothers, knowing he had no right, Ben turned and walked away. He kept walking, even when he reached the edge of camp, he just kept going. No one stopped him.

It wasn’t until he came out of Chinatown did Ben realize that he was still moving. It was there that he fell to his knees and a sob broke through. He had been trying so hard to keep it in until he could talk to Hal, but he couldn’t do it any longer. He just felt so guilty. It was all his fault.

It was his fault that Lexi turned against them, he didn’t protect her from the Espheni’s influence like he should have. He agreed with his Dad that Lexi was okay, that she wouldn’t turn against them. He left before the battle to try and get Lexi to stop, and failed miserably. He was the reason Hal entered that building and was there when it was destroyed. It was all because of him.

As sobs continued wracking through his body, Ben bent down, smashing his fists against the ground in anger, frustration, and fear, not even registering the resulting pain in his hands and wrists. Even if he did feel it, he wouldn’t have cared. He would heal. Hal on the other hand, might not.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Hal spent the rest of the day in Maggie’s room. Matt stayed with him for a couple of hours, even falling asleep on him after he finally stopped crying. He left though when Anne came in to check on him.

The oldest Mason child felt a little embarrassed when Anne entered the room, remembering his breakdown in the doctor’s arms the night before. Though she made no mention of it, Hal knew that he had caused her to worry about him more than was necessary. He could picture the sympathetic as vividly as if he was actually looking at her. He had seen that look from her numerous times when he was paralysed in Charleston.

She asked him a couple of questions, about how his head was feeling, random ones to check his concussion, if he could see anything, like the outlines of shapes or shadows. Then she checked the stitched cut on the back of his head and his ribs. Apparently satisfied with how well those injuries were healing, she then revealed that she had brought him something to eat.

Hal then, correctly assumed that Maggie had told her about how he hadn’t had anything to eat since before the attack, but unlike Maggie, Anne was not going to back down. So, very reluctantly, he let her help him eat the food that she brought, porridge, again. Though it was still frustrating, it was better than having to be fed by someone else because you couldn’t move, and luckily for him, he finished the bowl before his Dad came in.

When his Dad arrived, Anne left, saying that she had other patients to go check on, and while they both knew that was true, the two Masons also knew that it was an excuse to leave them alone. Hal didn’t give his Dad much of a chance to talk though, claiming he was still pretty tired. He had hoped his Dad would leave him alone at that, but he didn’t, reminding him that he wasn’t technically allowed to be unsupervised while he was still healing. Hal let it slide for two reasons. One, he didn’t want to have to go back the infirmary because he didn’t follow one of Anne’s conditions. Two, his Dad didn’t try to get him to talk, seemingly believing his son’s lies. So Hal closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Hal didn’t wake up until he felt an unexpected weight in the bed. His eyes shot open, seeing nothing but darkness, and pulled away from whatever or whomever was on the mattress with him.

“Sorry, I was trying not to wake you.” Hal immediately calmed down when he heard Maggie’s voice.

“It’s okay. How long was I asleep?” Hal wondered, moving his hand to feel that Maggie was beside him, lying on her side facing him. The minute he knew where she was, he lowered his hand back onto the blanket so he wouldn’t accidentally make her feel uncomfortable.

“All afternoon and evening. Your Dad stayed with you for most of it. I came in before supper. Anne came in with some food for the both of us, but we decided to let you rest.” Maggie informed him, then asked, “How are you feeling?”

“I’m alright.” Hal muttered, his voice still groggy from his sleep. He was about to let his exhaustion, that hadn’t really left him at all, pull him under again when Maggie spoke.

“Hal, please don’t push me away. Talk to me, let me help.” A sudden burst of anger shot through his body. Memories of before they were separated and he and his Dad were put in the ghettos came into his mind. For those two weeks after Karen died, all Maggie did was push him away, and now she expected him to open up.

As much as he hated that she was pushing him away, putting her guards up, he somewhat understood it. He didn’t know the exact reasons, but he respected that she wanted space and tried to give it to her while also trying to make sure that she knew he was there for her and that he loved her.

Usually, Maggie would do the same, give him some space, let him decide in his own time when he would talk and only when she felt that she had too, would she confront him about it. The fact that she was doing so right now told him that she was worried about him, and while he felt guilty that she was worried, he couldn’t push down the anger inside of him.

“You don’t get to do that Maggie.” Hal replied, hoping he was staring right at her.

“What do you mean?” Maggie truly sounded confused as to what he was talking about, which made him all the more angrier.

“You don’t get to push me away, to not tell me what’s wrong with you, to say one thing then say something opposite, then just expect me to open up and tell you what’s wrong with me. That’s not fair.” Hal explained, trying to keep how angry he actually was hidden, but he was sure he failed when Maggie didn’t respond. When the silence took over, the anger immediately disappeared and guilt took its place. He shouldn’t be mad at her, she was just worried about him. If she was hurt instead of him, he would feel the exact same way.

He was about to apologize when Maggie finally said, “You’re right, it’s not.”

Hal kept his mouth shut when he heard that and waited for her to continue, which she did after he heard her take a deep breath.

“I was scared. When I saw you with Karen, holding her hand, I was angry that you somehow still cared about her and was scared that a part of you still loved her, even after everything she did. And with Lexi, I, I don’t really know. I knew that she could be a threat, but, I guess I just, I was surprised that you agreed with me, that you didn’t try and stop me. You have always been about being there for your family, and protecting them. It threw me when you sided against them. I guess I felt that someone should stick up for her beside just her family.” Maggie revealed.

Hal’s guilt got worse as he heard Maggie’s side of the story. The last time he had ever heard such vulnerability in her voice was when she told him about her past, about the cancer, drugs and baby. He moved his hand to rest on her arm when he started to tell her his side of the story.

“Maggie, with Karen, that was not at all when you thought. I held her hand because a part of me hadn’t given up on the idea of saving her. Even if we had though, I’d still be with you. I love you far more than I loved her. I held her hand because at that moment, I was the only one she had. The real Karen, the person she was before she was harnessed had no one. Her entire family was dead. The Karen that I knew, didn’t deserve to die on the ground all alone, thinking that one cared about her. And, I wanted to say goodbye.” Hal confessed. Throughout all the chaos, confusion, and pain that happened with him and Karen, he never did feel like he had truly let her go and wanted to put that part of him to rest, but he never thought that Maggie would think anything like that.

“Believe it or not Maggie, I wanted to be wrong about Lexi. I wanted my family all together again, but I knew that I couldn’t take another Karen situation, not if people I cared about would get hurt in the process. But I wanted so badly to be proven wrong. So, so badly.” Hal closed his eyes tightly, remembering how much it hurt to see the looks on his Dad and brothers faces when they acted like he betrayed them, how angry they were with him. He had never been stabbed before, but he imagined that’s what it felt like.

“I’m sorry.” Maggie said after a moment of silence. Her quiet voice, filled with guilt caused his own guilt, for snapping at her and for putting her through all his crap with Karen, and with Lexi, to take over him.

“I am too.” Hal told her, his own voice just as quiet as he opened his eyes. When Maggie didn’t say anything else, he closed his eyes again, hoping that they could finally get some sleep now that they had talked.

“Hal?” Apparently, Maggie had more she wanted to say.

“Hmm,” was the only response Hal gave her. To let her know that he was still awake, but also to let her know that he was already falling asleep, hoping that if it was another heavy discussion she wanted to get into, that she would leave it until tomorrow. However, Maggie was dissuaded.

“While you did have a really good point, and we did need to talk about those things, doesn’t mean I didn’t notice that you were evading the question.” In his defense, Hal didn’t realize that that was exactly what he was doing. Even though he had a point, and they really did need to have a talk about everything that happened between them, deep down, he knew it was because he didn’t want to answer her question because he knew, that he couldn’t get away with lying to her.

“When Matt was here, he started crying, he’s worried I’m not going to get better. I tried to assure him that no matter what, I’ll be okay, but,” Hal started, but stopped before he finished his sentence.

“You’re scared too.” Maggie finished for him. Hal closed his eyes, not wanting to admit anything. He didn’t want anyone to see how scared and freaked out he still was.

“It’s nothing to be ashamed of Hal. If anyone has the right to be worried and scared, it’s you. But no matter what, I’ll be here, right by your side. So will your Dad and your brothers.” Maggie assured him.

Hal nodded, but kept his eyes closed, not wanting to see the look on her face, even though he couldn’t with his eyes open anyways. Though a part of him knew that she was right, another part of him kept reminding him of how furious his Dad was for thinking that Lexi could be a threat, of how loud he yelled, of every single word he said.

Maggie didn’t say anything else. Instead, she moved closer to, pressed her lips against his in a quick kiss, placed her head in the edge of her pillow. Soon, he heard her breathing even out, telling him that she had fallen asleep. Hal fingered the end of the blanket and pulled it up, trying to make sure that she was completely covered before he tried to go to sleep himself. It took what felt like hours though before he finally drifted off, the memory of his Dad yelling at him still running through his mind.


	8. Guilt

_Guilt isn’t always a rational thing. Guilt is a weight that will crush you whether you deserve it or not._ – **Maureen Johnson** , **_Girl at Sea_**

Maggie woke up to see Hal beside her, still fast asleep. He looked so peaceful and relaxed, something she hadn’t seen since before they were separated four months ago, since before they left Charleston. For those four months, whenever she closed her eyes, she pictured his face. At night, she would lay awake, trying to make sure she remembered every detail of his face, from his strong jaw to his expressive eyes. She missed so much more than she ever thought possible.

And now, he was here with her, but she might never see his brown eyes hold any expression again. She knew that he wasn’t angry with her, or his family for siding with Lexi, he confirmed that before the fight when he told her that what happened with Lexi was his fault, but she knew that he was hurt, and she didn’t blame him. The look of pain on his face when he watched her, along with his Dad and brothers sided against him, refused to listen, angry with him for suggesting that Lexi was a threat. How could that not hurt?

But, not only was he proven right, he watched his sister kill Lourdes. Then, they were attacked by the Espheni, where over 20 people were killed, one of them being Tector, another friend of his, and he was blinded.

Hal had a bad tendency to blame himself whenever something bad happened to the people he cared about. A tendency that she tried to get him to stop, but she wasn’t sure she ever could. It seemed to be ingrained into his DNA. After everything that happened though, he couldn’t keep carrying all this misplaced guilt anymore. He was strong, but she knew that this was too much, if he didn’t let it go, didn’t stop blaming himself, then this would break him.

_Knock. Knock._

Maggie slowly pulled herself off the bed when she heard the quiet knocks on the door, not wanting to wake up Hal unless she had too. She went over the door, opening it slowly so it wouldn’t creak as much. When she saw Anne standing on the other side, she fully opened the door to let her in.

“How’s he doing?” Anne asked, coming into the room and seeing that Hal was still asleep.

“He’s okay, I think. Considering the circumstances, he could be doing a lot worse.” Maggie answered, moving to stand beside the doctor.

“That’s true. Is he getting enough rest?” Anne questioned, wanting to get Maggie’s thoughts before she woke up Hal to ask him some of the same questions. She knew his girlfriend would be more honest than Hal would be about his well-being.

“Yeah, he’s been sleeping a lot lately.” Maggie responded, but there was something in her tone that caused Anne to look over at her.

“What is it?” Anne asked. Maggie didn’t say anything for a minute, then turned to look at Anne.

“You said that him sleeping a lot is normal right?” Maggie questioned.

“Yes, it is. Due to the head injury and trauma, he would get exhausted very easily. Why? Do you think it’s something more?” Anne wondered, now truly getting concerned.

“I don’t know yet, but he’s being pretty withdrawn and, I’m just worried that he’s getting depressed.” Maggie revealed.

During the seven months that Hal was paralyzed in Charleston, he became depressed a few weeks after he woke up unable to move. He was withdrawn, exhausted, he pretty much stopped eating and became really quiet. When they tried to get him to open up, he got angry.

They were still trying to help overcome it when he started getting feeling back in his upper back and arms again. As the paralysis started to wear off, the depression seemed to go away, but Maggie knew from experience that it was never that easy or simple. And now, seeing Hal having some of the same behavior again, she couldn’t help but wonder if it was still there.

“He might well be Maggie, I can’t deny that. But it’s only been a few days, he’s still recovering. Just give him more time.” Anne replied, her voice sympathetically. Maggie was about to respond when she heard a small groan and turned her head to see Hal open his eyes.

“Hey Hal, how you feeling?” Anne asked as Hal turned his head in their direction.

“I’m alright.” Hal answered, pushing himself into a sitting position. Once he was sitting up, he lifted his hand to rub his head.

“You still got that headache?” Anne wondered as she sat down on edge of the bed beside him.

“A little, but it’s not that bad anymore.” Hal told her, lowering his arm.

“That’s good. What about your vision?” Anne questioned, though she knew from the way his eyes were unfocused that he still couldn’t see anything. She hoped however, that it might be getting better, enough to start seeing different shades or some shadows.

“Still completely black.” Hal revealed, looking annoyed and a little dejected. Anne smiled despite the fact he couldn’t see it.

“That’s normal Hal, don’t worry about it. I’ll go get you something to eat.” The doctor said. She gave him a quick pat on his shoulder, then stood up and walked out of the room.

Hal sat in silence for a minute, wondering if he was all alone. He could hear quiet breathing but wasn’t sure if it was his or someone else’s. He wasn’t sure what time it was, if Maggie had left already since he hadn’t heard her voice yet.

“Maggie?” Hal called out quietly. Maggie startled a little, having been lost in her thoughts for a moment and quickly realized that Hal didn’t know that she was still in the room.

“I’m here Hal.” She confirmed her presence as she moved to sit on the bed beside him, in the spot that Anne just vacated, “Did you sleep okay?”

“Yeah I did. Much better than I did in the infirmary.” Hal assured her, feeling her grab his hand, which he griped in response.

“Good, that’s good.” Maggie replied quietly.

“Is something wrong?” Hal asked, sensing something in her tone that made him worry, especially considering what happened last night.

“No, no, I just,” Maggie paused for a moment, planning on thinking of an excuse, but then decided to be honest, “I’m just worried about you. You keep bottling everything up Hal, instead of dealing with it. I just wish you would talk to me, or to your Dad, or Anne.”

“If I need to talk, I will. I promise.” Hal told her, squeezing her hand tightly. If he could see her, he would’ve placed his fingers under her chin to make sure she was looking at him, then kissed her.

“Okay.” Maggie responded, then leaned forward and kissed him herself, which he whole-heartedly returned.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Just like the day before, it was quiet, a little too quiet for Weaver. Though he didn’t want another Espheni attack and was glad that it didn’t seem as though they were getting ready to launch another other one, he felt extremely uneasy. The aliens kicked them to the curb only a few days ago and yet weren’t finishing them off and the Colonel didn’t know or understand why.

Despite that though, Weaver knew there would eventually be another attack and they had to be ready for it. He had patrols constantly going out to make sure no skitters or Mechs were coming there way, had some search teams going out for supplies to make sure they were stocked up, and had the rest working on finishing the barricade to protect the group.

Everyone was working hard, even some of the kids, and that was why Weaver was surprised to see Ben Mason sitting on the steps of a partially wrecked building away from camp, all alone, staring into the distance. Weaver then walked over to him and sat down beside the teenager.

“Ben, you okay?” Weaver asked when Ben didn’t move or seem to acknowledge him at all. Usually the teenage would acknowledge anyone who would approach him, especially if he was all alone. There was no way he didn’t hear him either, Ben could probably hear a pin drop over 50 feet away.

“No.” Ben’s voice was barely audible, Weaver almost didn’t hear him. Seeing the mix of fear and worry on the kid’s face, the Colonel sat down on the steps beside him.

“What’s wrong?” Weaver questioned. Ben looked down at the ground to hide his face, but not fast enough for the older man to miss the shameful expression replacing what was there before.

“It’s my fault that Hal is injured.” Ben replied, unable to keep what happened a secret anymore. Usually he’d always tell his Dad who would always help him out with whatever problem he had. Given the circumstances though, he couldn’t confide in him, not with this. His Dad was so worried about Hal, and Ben knew he was struggling with Lexi’s betrayal on top of that, that there was no way he could had his problems to his Dad’s. Not to mention, he knew his Dad would be so angry at him for getting Hal hurt.

“What? What are you talking about?” Weaver wondered, confused as to what Ben was talking about. He was the one who found Ben trying to unbury Hal, and didn’t see any evidence of how the middle son was at fault for what happened. Ben though, lowered his head and started to speak.

“That night, I had gone to find Lexi, to try and convince her to stop the attack, but it didn’t work. I came back, Hal was in the armoury, getting weapons. I tried to talk to him, about Dad. I just didn’t want him to be angry at him, and I thought he would just brush it off, I mean, it’s what he always does. He said he didn’t want to talk about it, but I kept pushing and he got angry. I was stunned, I can’t remember the last he got that angry.

“And he had every right. I mean, we treated him like crap. He told me to leave, so I did. As I approached the door though, I saw the Espheni ships coming. I called him over, and he said we had to go because the bombs were dropping. I went back to get the rest of the weapons, even though Hal told me not too. He came back to get me, and pushed me out of the building as the bomb went off. He saved me, but the building collapsed on him. It’s my fault, and he doesn’t even remember it.” Ben finished, still keeping his head down, not wanting to see the judging look he was so terrified of seeing on the Colonel’s face.

“Ben, let me ask you this. If it was the other way around, would you go back and save Hal, even at the risk of getting hurt?” Weaver asked unexpectedly, causing Ben to finally look up at the former soldier’s face.

“Yes, of course I would, he’s my brother.” Ben said with a certainty that Weaver knew was true. After spending years with the Mason family, the one thing he knew for sure was that they would do anything for each other.

“And if you were injured, would you blame Hal?” Weaver then asked once he got his answer.

“It wouldn’t matter, I’d heal because of my spikes.” Ben pointed out.

“Ben, just answer the question.” Weaver told him in a gentle yet firm tone.

“No, no I wouldn’t.” Ben answered. He knew what Weaver was getting at, but he still couldn’t shake the doubt, fear, and guilt that coursed through his entire body over the last few days. Weaver nodded, agreeing completely with Ben’s answer.

“Then don’t even think that Hal will blame you either. I do think he should know though, if not for your sake, then his. He should know why he was hurt in the first place.” Weaver told him. He lifted his hand, squeezed Ben’s shoulder in an act of comfort before he stood up and walked away.

Ben sat in silence once again, staring the place where Weaver once sat as his words ran through his mind. He knew deep down that Weaver was right. For as long as Ben could remember, Hal had never outright blamed him for anything, not including trivial things like, who forgot to do the dishes. Though there was times when Ben suspected he did, he never actually said so. It was what made Ben so scared of letting Hal know what happened. This could be the straw that finally broke the camel’s back. After all, Hal already had a lot of straws weighing heavily on him, it wouldn’t be much longer before he snapped.

But Weaver also did have another point that Hal deserved to know. If it was him, he’d want to know. Ben sat there for almost an hour, gathering up every bit of courage he had before he stood up and headed towards Maggie and Hal’s room.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Not long after Hal ate the breakfast that Anne had brought him and Maggie, Anne again left to go back to her patients, soon followed by Maggie, who was on patrol. His Dad arrived soon after they left, probably having been informed by one of the two women that he was alone. Even though he didn’t think it necessary to be watched constantly, it was part of the deal he made to stay with Maggie instead of the infirmary.

His Dad didn’t stay long though. He tried to talk to him, but Hal really wasn’t in much of a talking mood. He already just had a somewhat heavy discussion with Maggie last night and didn’t want to have any other heavy talk, especially not with his Dad.

Hal wasn’t sure exactly what was up with him, but he let out frustrated and had sad tone in his voice when he pushed him away again. If his Dad was upset that he wouldn’t talk to him though, Hal didn’t understand why. He and his Dad barely ever had much of an important or heavy talk or discussion of any type and he wasn’t sure why the former History Professor seemed surprised or upset about that. It wasn’t like his Dad ever showed much interest in wanting to have any important talk before.

After his Dad realized that he wasn’t in any mood to talk, he stayed pretty quiet. He asked how he was feeling, gave him some updates about what was going on, though it wasn’t much different from what he’s told them over the last few days. Not long after that, Hal laid down and tried to get more sleep. Despite how much sleep he had been getting, it never seemed to be enough to get rid of his near constant exhaustion.

He then felt his Dad sit on the edge of the bed and he just knew that he was watching him sleep with a guilty look on his face. He knew that his Dad was blaming himself for all the deaths and him being injured, even though it wasn’t his fault, it was Hal’s, but he really didn’t want to get into a debate about that now. So, he pretended to sleep and he did.

He woke up though to the sound of a door opening and quiet voices. Then, there was the sound of heavy footsteps leaving the room and the door closing, leaving only the other person with him. It was then that Hal opened his sightless eyes, and turned his head as though to look around the room.

“Hey Hal.” Ben said as soon as he saw that Hal was awake.

“Hey Ben. What’s up?” Hal wondered, now knowing who was in the room with him now, and sat up.

“Nothing much, just wanted to see how you’re doing.” Ben told him, then gasped when he realized what word he just used and started to apologize, “Sorry, I didn’t mean,”

“Ben. It’s okay. Just because my eyesight isn’t working doesn’t mean no one can saw the word ‘see’. It’s fine.” Hal interrupted. It didn’t take him long after he woke up to find he was blind to realize how everyone around him was acting and talking. He knew that it was just because they didn’t want him to think they were accidentally rubbing his lack of sight in his face, but it was starting to get really annoying.

“So, what’s going on outside?” Hal changed the subject, which Ben was grateful for.

“Um, nothing much. We’re making a barricade, so the aliens won’t be able to get into our camp so easily when they attack us next time.” Ben informed him, trying and failing to come up with an interesting topic that would distract Hal so he would have more time to brace himself for telling Hal how he actually got injured.

“Good.” Hal said.

“And, we’re having a funeral for the people who died tonight.” Ben said, knowing that Hal would want to know since Tector was one the people who died and was Hal’s friend. For a long moment, Hal didn’t say anything though a sad expression told Ben all he needed to know.

“We’re burying 27 people at once?” Hal’s voice was almost completely monotone except for the small amount of skepticism, trying not to let Ben know how much he was blaming himself for his friend’s, and the others, deaths.

“Not exactly. We’re cremating them.” Ben replied. Usually they would try to bury them, but they didn’t have time or space with how little their camp was and with the threat of being attacked, “Are you going to come?”

“Maybe, I don’t know. My head still hurts every now and then.” Hal told him, though that wasn’t the complete truth. His head was still hurting, but he wasn’t excited at the idea of going outside with a full group of people staring at him, even though he knew he should be there, especially since Tector was one of the victims. When Ben didn’t say anything else and silence started to grow awkward, Hal knew that something was up with his younger brother.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s wrong or am I supposed to guess?” Hal finally asked after a few minutes of neither of them saying anything.

“That obvious?” Ben wondered with a light-hearted tone. Hal nodded as Ben finally moved to sit down on the bed. The younger Mason waited a moment, then took a deep breath.

“Okay, well, you know how we told you that you were injured because you were in a building that collapsed while you were in it?” Ben questioned.

“Yeah.” Hal replied. Ben looked down at the ground as he started explaining what happened.

“Well, it was the armoury. You were in there getting more weapons and ammo after the first wave. I was gone, trying to reason with Lexi to stop the Espheni from attacking us. When it didn’t work, I came back to help. I found you in the armoury. I tried to talk to you about Dad, I didn’t want you to be angry at him, even though you had every right to be. I didn’t realize it until I looked at your perspective though.

“So, we got into a fight and you told me to leave. As I was leaving though, I saw the spaceships coming, I called you over and they started dropping bombs. You said we had to go, but I went back to get the rest of the weapons. I didn’t know you had followed me until you pulled me away and started pushing me towards the door. Then, a bomb went off and you pushed me out the door, but you didn’t make it out. You saved me.” Ben revealed. Once he finished, he stayed quiet, waiting for Hal to respond, but he didn’t. He was just as quiet as Ben was.

“I’m so sorry Hal. I never should’ve gone back for those weapons. If I hadn’t, you wouldn’t have gotten hurt.” Ben apologized as he looked down at the ground, feeling tears prickle the corners of his eyes.

“Were you hurt?” Hal asked, the concern in his voice surprising Ben.

“A few bruises and scrapes, but other than that, no.” Ben answered, looking at Hal curiously. He wasn’t sure what to expect from Hal when he knew the truth, somewhere between silent anger, where Hal wouldn’t say anything and just walk away or ask him to leave. Or, him yelling and blaming him. This, didn’t make the list.

“Ben, as long as you are okay, I don’t care.” Hal informed him, slowly moving his arm so he could wrap it around his little brother. He touched the blonde’s back, then moved to wrap it around Ben’s shoulder.

“What?” Ben asked in disbelief, finally raising his head to look at Hal, who was staring blindly in his direction.

“You are my little brother Ben. I’d take a bullet for you. I don’t blame you for me being blind. None of this is your fault, it was my choice.” _Yeah, my choice and my fault_ , Hal thought silently to himself, then added, “I didn’t have to go after you, but I did because I didn’t want you to get hurt. If I could go back and change things, I’d still make the choice I did before.”

“I’m so sorry.” Ben apologized, turning towards his older brother and leaned against him, head against his chest as tears started running down his face.

“It’s okay Ben, it’s okay.” Hal whispered in Ben’s ear and he wrapped both of his arms around his brother’s trembling figure and held him tightly.

Ben wasn’t sure how long he sobbed into his big brother’s chest. A part of him felt extremely childish for crying like this on top of Hal, who was going through so much more than he was and despite that, and despite knowing that his blindness was because of him, Hal actually forgave him and was comforting him.

After about, what Ben guessed to be 20 minutes, his tears finally slowed down and he regained control over his harsh breathing. Hal didn’t let go though, nor did Ben really want him to. No matter how old they were, or how often they fought, he always felt safe with his big brother.

“Hal?” Ben spoke up after his tears finally stopped. He had never bottled up something like this for so long.

“Yeah?” Hal responded.

“I was thinking, what if we could give you your eyesight back?” Ben said, and Hal released his hold on his younger brother.

“What are you talking about?” Hal asked as Ben sat back and wiped the tears from his cheeks.

“Well, Deni had bad eyesight before the invasion, but her spikes fixed that. If I had Anne take out some of my spikes, she could put them in you, and you could see again.” Ben informed him. Hal’s face took on a thoughtful expression before he shook his head.

“Thanks Ben, but no.” Hal answered.

“Why not?” _Because you don’t deserve it, that’s why_ the voice told him. Hal however gave his brother a small smile, thinking of a different answer so his brother would drop the subject.

“I’m not overly fond of the idea of having spikes in my back, sorry.” A little worried that the blonde would push the idea, Hal lifted his arm and placed his hand on Ben’s shoulder, “It’s okay Ben, I’ll be alright.”

Ben for his part, didn’t say anything else. He still thought it was a good idea, but he wasn’t going to force his brother. If Hal didn’t want his spikes, that was his choice, even if he never does get his eyesight back. If Ha changed his mind however, Ben would have no problem with giving up some of his spikes.


	9. Blame

Tom slowly headed over to where the barricade was being built, wanting to see how much progress had been done and if they needed help. Any moment that he had that he wasn’t checking on Hal, he had spent helping out the other members of the 2nd Mass with the barricade as well as some patrols. It wasn’t much, but after everything that happened with what Lexi did, Tom wanted to do everything he could to make up for the Espheni attack.

As he approached the small group of people working on fortifying the wall, he inwardly groaned when he saw that Pope was working with them. When the former criminal saw him, he scowled, but continued working. He had been doing that a lot ever since the Espheni attack, but he never said anything, though they both knew it was only a matter of time. Not wanting to deal with him at the moment, Tom then changed direction a little to walk towards Anthony, who was also helping out.

“How’s it going?” Tom questioned.

“Good, almost done with this section. Only one more section left after this.” Anthony informed him.

“That’s good. Need some help?” Tom wondered, getting ready to bend down and help Anthony lift a piece of rubble to move it to the barricade. That’s was when Pope decided to say something.

“I think you’ve helped enough Professor, don’t you?” Tom took a deep breath to try and control the sudden burst of anger, frustration, and guilt that rose up inside him at Pope’s words.

“Knock it off Pope.” Anthony said, seeing the look on Tom’s face as well as the way Tom had tensed up.

“Why should I? We tried to tell him that Lexi couldn’t be trusted, but did you listen Mason? Nope, you refused to believe that your daughter could betray us, even though she was part Espheni.” Pope started ranting, getting the surrounding people’s attention.

“What do you want from me Pope? An apology? To tell you that you were right, and I was wrong? That this is all my fault? Is that what you want?” Tom asked angrily, his hands clenched into fists, completely fed up with the criminal’s attitude.

“I don’t want anything from you Mason. As to the apology, I’m not the one you should be saying it too.” Tom immediately stiffened, his fists uncurling. He doesn’t need Pope to tell him who he’s talking about. He already knows. Without another word though, Tom turned around and walked away from the Berserker.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

After leaving the barricade, Tom sat down on the steps of the infirmary, staring at the building across from him, the building where Maggie’s room was, where Hal was staying. Every time he had been trying to talk to Hal about what had happened with Lexi, talk to him at all actually, Hal had been pushing him away, always saying that he was really tired or just pretending to go to sleep. While Tom knew that his son needed rest, he also knew that Hal simply didn’t want to talk to him and he knew that it was because of how he handled the situation with Lexi. Hal told him that Lexi couldn’t be trusted, that she could be against them and Tom refused to listen because he refused to look at the bigger picture of what was going on.

They had all been through so much over the last few months, but Hal more specifically. He had been bugged and controlled by his ex-girlfriend Karen, watched Karen get killed by his father when he still believed she could be saved, thinking his sister and Anne were dead, getting separated from his family to be reunited only to have a major falling out with them, then watched his sister kill his best friend. As if that wasn’t enough, he was other friend was now dead in the attack and he was blind, and Tom had no idea what to do, how to make any of this better.

“Tom, you okay?” Tom almost jumped at the sound of Weaver’s voice. He was so lost in thought that he didn’t hear his friend approach.

“No.” Tom answered honestly, too tired to try and convince the older man of a lie that he couldn’t even convince himself was true, not anymore.

“What’s wrong?” Weaver asked as he sat down beside him, just like he did with Ben only a few hours earlier.

“I made a big mistake with Hal. Every time I’ve tried to talk to him, or comfort him, he shrugs me off. I feel like he’s pulling away from me.” Tom replied, an almost hopelessness sound in his voice.

“You want me to be honest with you?” Weaver asked, wondering if Tom was at the point where he was ready to hear the truth of what he had seen of Tom’s relationship with his oldest son for the last few years, especially the last few days.

“Yes.” Tom replied without hesitation, desperate for answers. Weaver however, hesitated for a moment before he replied.

“Alright. From what I’ve seen, Hal’s been pulling away from you for a while.” Tom turned his head to look at Weaver, a shocked and confused expression on his face.

“What?” Tom questioned.

“Tom, for as long as I’ve know you and your family, I’ve watched how Hal slowly stopped telling you about any problem he had, and, I’ve seen how the few times he tried, you either weren’t there, or didn’t listen.” Weaver informed him, trying to be as gentle as possible, knowing that this had to be hard to hear.

“What are you talking about?” Tom asked with a confused and fearful tone.

“Remember when you left to go visit President Hathaway? Hal came looking for you. He wanted to talk to you, and I think we both know what it was about.”

“I totally forgot about that.” Tom said, closing his eyes for a few seconds before opening them again, adding, “But I know I messed up there, and I told him when, oh crap.”

“What?” Weaver asked, seeing the look of sudden realization and frustration on his friend’s face before the former professor turned his head away.

“The only time I talked to him about it, was when he was being controlled by Karen and had taken me hostage. He doesn’t even remember. After we got the bug out, I was so focused on finding Anne and Lexi that I never talked to him about it again.” Tom replied, looking down at his folded hands, completely ashamed of himself for forgetting about what all Hal must’ve been going through after they got the bug out.

“Tom, do you realize, that this entire time, you’ve been focusing on all of your kids, except for Hal? I know that he’s the oldest, the more responsible one, the one who has a better chance of surviving on his own, but, he’s still a kid, and you’re still his father, and deep down, he wants to talk to you, but if you ignore him or argue with him every time he tries, yeah, he’s going to stop.”

“I love all of my kids equally, I don’t favor one over the other.” Tom quickly protested. He loved his children with all of his heart, would do anything for them, and couldn’t believe that someone, especially Weaver would suggest otherwise.

“Maybe not in your heart, but the way you act doesn’t really say that. I know that situations come up where one of the other kids needs you more at the moment, Hal knows it too, but it always seems that with Hal, it isn’t until something big happens to him that he has your attention. Look, I’m not saying what Hal said about Lexi couldn’t have been done better, and maybe it was a little cold, but he had some fair points. And right there, you refused to even listen to him.” Weaver tried to explain.

“I was trying to protect my daughter.” Tom insisted.

“I know, but when you did that, you chose your daughter, who you barely even know, over Hal, who you raised, who you know would never hurt anyone, much less his own family, unless it was absolutely the only way to save everyone else. And he stood there and watched his entire family, as well as Maggie, turn against him. He didn’t deserve that.” Weaver responded.

“I know he didn’t. But what was I supposed to do?” Tom questioned as he looked down yet again, shame now mixing with the desperate look on his face.

“First off, listened to him, and pointed the gun away from him and at Pope and his crew who did want to kill Lexi instead. Hal wasn’t saying we should kill her, he was saying we had to be prepared in case she wasn’t on our side.” Weaver listed slowly as he remembered what all happened that night. Tom again turned to look at the Colonel, anger evident in his eyes and expression.

“I never pointed the gun at Hal.” Tom told him with an anger-filled voice. He couldn’t believe that Weaver would think he would ever point a gun at one of his children.

“You kinda did Tom. You had it in your hand and the minute you saw him, you raised it. Not at anyone, but enough to tell Hal that you would shoot if he threatened Lexi. What does that say about you to Hal?” Weaver asked. Tom got a faraway look in his eyes as he tried to recall what all happened that night.

With everything that had been happening, all of his thoughts had been on protecting Lexi and he barely registered what was going on. Now though, he found a dim, blurry memory of holding a gun in his hands as Hal said again, that Lexi could be a threat to them. Tom thought that he couldn’t feel any worse than when he realized that Hal was right about Lexi and she killed Lourdes, but when he remembered that he actually was holding a gun, he was proven wrong.

“I don’t know how to fix this.” Tom admitted, shaking his head and looking down at the ground as tears threatened to fall from his eyes. Weaver sympathetically gave his friend a light pat on his back.

“I can’t help you there Tom, because I don’t know the answer either. All I do know is that you better find some way to fix it, otherwise, your daughter won’t be the only child you’ve lost.” With that being said, the Colonel stood up and walked away, leaving Tom alone.


	10. Broken

_They call you useless and paint bruises on your ribs. You nod and stay silent._

_They call you patriot and brand death between your brows. You smile and sing for them._

_They call you mad and shoot bullets through your soul. You stand, and you scream and make the fire your home._

_But then, they call you hero and you sigh and shake your head._

_‘No’ you say, ‘I am the moral, I am Icarus. And I am already falling.’_

_- **unknown**_

Not long after he and Weaver talked, and the Colonel left to get back to work, Tom found himself walking towards Maggie and Hal’s room. Weaver was right, he needed to fix his relationship with his oldest son and he knew that if he didn’t do it now, he never would.

The room was quiet when Tom entered. He quickly spotted Hal and Ben sitting on the bed. Both of them turned their heads to look at who had come into the room, even though from the blank look in Hal’s eyes Tom knew he still couldn’t see anything. But Ben’s eyes were red and somewhat puffy like he had been crying. He immediately questioned if whether or not he should talk to Hal about what happened if he and Ben just had a hard conversation.

“Hey Dad. Is something wrong?” Ben wondered as he felt Hal tense up beside him which made him confused. He understood why his brother would tense up when he heard someone come into the room since he didn’t know who was there, which was why Ben mentioned who it was, but he would’ve though that Hal would’ve relaxed when he heard that it was their Dad.

“No, no, everything is fine. Just checking in, making sure everything’s okay in here.” Tom answered in an awkward tone, almost like he was a little embarrassed.

“We’re okay.” Ben told him, confused by the way his brother and father were acting. It was as though their Dad wanted to do or say something and Hal knew it but really didn’t want anything to do with it.

“Good, good.” Tom replied absently, then added “Ben, I think Weaver could use your help outside.”

Quickly figuring out that his Dad was now wanting him to leave, he knew when his father was lying, Ben knew for a fact he was right. So, as he stood up he said, “Okay. I’ll see you later Hal.”

The minute his middle son was gone, Tom turned his attention to his oldest. Even though there was still a bit of distance between them, he could still see the tension in the young man’s body. It wasn’t surprising though, Hal had been tense every time he was around after what happened that night in the courtyard, before Lexi turned against them.

“How are you doing?” Tom questioned as he walked towards the bed where Hal was still sitting.

“I’m fine Dad. Still really tired though.” Hal replied. It wasn’t a complete lie, after his talk with Ben he was feeling a little drained.

“Stop Hal. Just stop.” Tom immediately stated, not willing to let his son convince him to leave the talk he wanted to have with him for another day.

“Stop what?” Hal asked innocently.

“Stop pushing me away. I know you’re trying to avoid me.” Tom responded. Hal dropped the innocent expression, lowered his head, and nodded.

“Dad, I really don’t want to talk right now.” Hal said, deciding that if he’s Dad was now pushing hard enough to reveal that he knew he was lying, he could be honest about it. Maybe he would wait until he actually felt ready, though Hal was 99% sure if his Dad didn’t force him too, he would never actually talk about it.

“If we don’t Hal, we never will.” Tom pointed out as he sat down on the bed beside Hal. The young fighter turned to let his legs drape over the side of the bed and sighed, completely realizing that his Dad wasn’t going to let this go. So, he waited for his Dad to start talking.

“I know that you’re angry at me, you have every right to be. I didn’t believe you, didn’t even listen to you. I was, a terrible father. I thought that Lexi would be on our side, refused to even consider that she wasn’t. And she killed Lourdes, left us which let the Espheni attack, and you got hurt. You got hurt because I promised I could protect everyone from Lexi and I couldn’t. I’m so sorry Hal.” Tom explained and apologized, guilt and pain evident in his voice.

“It’s not your fault Dad. Lexi made her choices, and I get why you didn’t want to believe that she wouldn’t be on our side. She’s family.” Hal tried to defend his father, not wanting to hear the pain and guilt the former professor was clearly feeling.

“It is my fault Hal. I should’ve-” Tom started to take the blame again, but Hal was quick to interrupt.

“It’s not your fault Dad, okay?” Hal insisted, his calm voice becoming more frustrated and angry.

“Hal?” Tom said with a confused and concerned tone, then asked “Hal, what’s going on?”

“After Karen died, we were reunited with Anne and Lexi, and Lexi took the bugs out of Lourdes, I went to talk to her. I, I still wasn’t sure what I all did when Karen was controlling me, and I wanted to know if Lourdes remembered what the Espheni made her do. And, she did. She remembered stealing our battle plans, remembered killing Manchester and President Hathaway, remembered planting to bomb. But, she didn’t remember helping Karen take Anne and Lexi.” Hal slowly started to explain.

“Hal,” Tom had been hoping that Hal would’ve let what happened in Charleston with the eye-bug go after they realized that Lourdes was actually the mole, but apparently he didn’t.

“The night Anne and Lexi went missing, was the night where I stopped remembering what happened until I woke up in that hospital room. Dad, I’m the one who helped Karen take them. This is all my fault, not yours.” Hal confessed, tears in his expressionless eyes as he moved his head downwards so his Dad wouldn’t see, but it was too late. Tom had seen, and even if he hadn’t, he could hear the pain and guilt that was so raw in his son’s voice, and he knew it was time to make a confession of his own.

“I know, that you were the one who Karen forced to help her take Anne and Lexi.” Tom revealed, causing Hal to suddenly turn his head in his direction in shock. Seeing the few tears still running down the young man’s cheeks, Tom continued, “Anne told me during those two weeks before we got separated. I didn’t want you to know because I knew you were still blaming yourself for what Karen made you do and didn’t want to add to it.”

For the first time that Tom could remember, Hal appeared to be completely speechless as he saw a shocked look on his face. Slowly, he watched his son turn his head away as though to stare straight ahead again. For a long moment, Hal didn’t say anything, but Tom waited for his reaction, waited for him to realize that he wasn’t at fault, but he said and did nothing.

“Hal, none of this is your fault. Karen was the one who changed Lexi’s DNA, Karen was the one who was controlling you and Lourdes. If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s hers.” Tom finally spoke up with he realized that Hal was blaming himself.

“I let the Espheni take her though too. And I didn’t save her either.” Hal pointed out.

“I didn’t let you rescue her when we had the chance. It’s my fault too.” The father countered.

“Dad,” Hal started to say, not wanting to listen to his father try and take the blame for what happened.

“No Hal, we can play this game back and forth for however long we want, but we’re not going to get anywhere.” Hal couldn’t argue with that, so he kept his mouth shut for the moment, trying to think of a way out of the conversation.

“Hal, why does everything need to be your fault?” Tom asked, completely astounded at how far his oldest was going to take the blame for everything that had happened. When Hal gave no reply, Tom tried again, “Hal? Come on, talk to me.”

“I promised Mom.” Hal’s voice was so quiet that Tom almost missed it.

“Promised her what?” Tom wondered, lowering his own voice.

“Promised I’d watch out for you guys, I promised I’d watch out for our family, and I haven’t been.” Tom wanted to kick himself. Hal had told him, less than a year after the invasion began when Ben and Matt were going to that fake sanctuary with the other kids about his promise to his Mom, but he should’ve realized how far Hal would go to keep that promise and bad the guilt would be if he didn’t think he kept it.

“Hal, your Mom didn’t mean for you to take responsibility for everything that happens to us. No one can shoulder all of that, especially during a time like this. And if anyone should be carrying that weight, it should be me, not you. I’m your father, I’m Ben’s, Matt’s and Lexi’s father. I know you’re strong Hal, but no one can hold on to all of this, you’re not responsible for my choices, or Lexi’s, or anybody else’s Hal.” Tom tried to convince the young man. Hal however, just shook his head.

“But Mom-” Hal immediately started to object, though Tom wasn’t having any of it.

“Would be proud of you. She would Hal.” Tom tired to get his son to believe, but from the look on his face, he knew he was failing at it. So, he took a different approach.

“Hal, when you were being controlled by the eye bug, controlled by Karen, and you took me hostage, I told you something that I think you really need to know, to hear.” Tom decided to reveal.

“I told you that I should’ve noticed what was going on with you, and that as much as I’d love to say it was because of my job as President, we both know that it started way before that. Before the invasion I missed a lot of your games, and a lot of dinners. Your Mom was always there though.”

“Dad,” Hal broke in, his voice threatening to crack. He didn’t want to hear this, he couldn’t hear it, not now. If he did, he wouldn’t be able to keep from breaking.

“Please, let me finish?” Tom pleaded, needing to know that his son knew this. When Hal didn’t say anything, he took it as permission to continue.

“I told you how she thought you were going to be a fighter pilot, but I couldn’t see it,” Tom immediately saw Hal clench his jaw but continued, “because the thing about being a pilot is that one wrong move, one small error in judgment and you’re dead, and I didn’t think you had that kind of focus. But after fighting next to you, side by side, watching you lead men and women into battle, I realized that as usual your Mom was right, and I really wish that she had lived to see the man you’ve become. She really loved you Hal.”

Hal didn’t say anything, he just lowered his head and raised his hand up to his eyes. Tom again waited for his son to respond, though with every second that passed, the more nervous he got. He had hardly ever had a talk like this with Hal, besides the first time when he was being controlled by the eye-bug and even then, that seemed easier. Maybe it was because he knew that though Hal was there, he wasn’t in control, but watching the tears run down his son’s face felt like a punch to the gut.

“I miss her.” Hal’s voice broke while he admitted those three words. When Tom heard his son’s hitched breath from his attempting to not cry, he pulled the young man into his arms. Hal didn’t fight him, he just let his Dad hold him as sobs started to rack his body.

“I do too. But I know that if she was here right now, she’d tell you that she loves you, and is proud of you. She always was Hal. So was I. I still am.” Tom told him.

Even though Hal knew his Dad meant for the words to be comforting, it was so hard to hear, and made him the sobs come harder and faster. He couldn’t stop crying and he didn’t know why. He was always so good at keeping his emotions under control, but now, it was as though a dam inside of him had burst open. The sobs running through his body were enough that he would’ve fallen to the floor if his father wasn’t holding him.

“Dad?” Hal spoke once the sobs had somewhat subsided.

“Yeah?” Tom responded, still holding his son tightly, rubbing his back comfortingly.

“What if I can’t see again?” Hal asked, his tone full of fear. The father just held his boy tighter as he tried to find an answer.

“Then we’ll deal with it, okay?” Tom answered, and lowered his head to press a small kiss on his son’s head then said, “No matter what happens, it will be okay. We’re all here for you. Everything’s going to okay.”

If Hal thought he was lying, he didn’t say anything. He just let the crying run its course while Tom just held him as tightly as he could, wishing there was some way he could take his son’s pain and fear away.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Later that night, Hal laid in bed with Maggie. She came in about two hours after his Dad came in to talk to him. Luckily, he had finished his breakdown before she did, otherwise he’d have her worrying more about him which he didn’t want. He could tell he already had caused his Dad to worry more when he left earlier tonight, because he was very hesitant to leave, but after much convincing from himself and Maggie, the older man did.

Now though, the couple was trying to get some rest after an exhausting day, but Hal found that sleep was not coming at all. All day, he kept thinking about what would and could happen if he didn’t get his sight back, and now it was keeping him awake.

“Maggie, are you still awake?” Hal asked as quietly as possible, not wanting to wake her if she was indeed asleep.

“Yeah. Why, what’s wrong?” Maggie wondered, her voice full of concern.

“I was thinking,” Hal paused, trying to think of how to tell her what he wanted to, but that pause only made Maggie’s concern grow.

“Hal, what’s going on?” Maggie asked as Hal felt her hand rest on his cheek.

“If I don’t get my sight back, I, I’m not going to hold you to anything. You didn’t sign up for this.” Hal tried to explain what he was thinking, hoping that Maggie understood so he didn’t have to actually say it.

“Sign up for what?” Maggie questioned, though she was pretty sure she knew what Hal was trying to say.

“Sign up to be with a blind man.” Hal said miserably as he closed his eyes. Maggie let out a frustrated sigh, and shook her head. She should’ve seen this coming, he had done the same thing in Charleston.

“I signed up to be with you,” Maggie told him, moving so her forehead would rest against his, her thumb rubbing his cheek, “I want to be with you, whether you are blind or not.”

“You deserve more.” Hal objected, as he opened his eyes. With his eyes open, he could pretend that he was looking at her. There were times he could swear he could see her blonde hair glowing in the light, or the outline of her figure, along with his family members, but he didn’t say anything about it. He didn’t want anyone to get their hopes up, himself included.

“Hal, I love you, and want you, no matter what, I’m not leaving. Try all you want, you can’t make me.” Maggie said with a smile, then pressed a kiss on his cheek.

“I love you Maggie.” Hal whispered.

“I love you too.” Maggie said, and gave him another kiss, this time on his lips which he returned. When she pulled away, she moved her hand that was resting on his cheek to the back of his head and pulled him close to her, his head resting on her shoulder. In response, Hal wrapped his arms around her. Neither of them said anything, they just held each other as they fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Regarding the quote at the very beginning of the chapter, I seriously have no idea who wrote it. I tried to look it up but I couldn’t find it. I take no credit for it. It is beautiful and sad and most definitely not mine. All credit goes to whoever did write it. Hope you guys likes this chapter.


	11. Light

For the first time since Charleston, Hal woke up feeling fairly content. His head wasn’t hurting at the moment, he wasn’t feeling the exhaustion that had plagued him the last few days, and Maggie was beside him, their arms wrapped around each other. Slowly, he opened his eyes, then immediately closed them when a bright, yellow light shone straight into his eyes. When Hal realized what just happened, he opened his eyes again, much more slowly.

Everything was pretty blurry, but Hal could see Maggie’s outline easily. Light that was coming in from under a blanket that he assumed was covering a window, making her blonde hair glow a brilliant gold. Being as careful as he could so he wouldn’t wake up the woman beside him, Hal moved and sat up on the bed, swinging his legs to hang over the edge of the mattress.

He looked down at the ground, remembering what Anne said about keeping his eyes from the light. It was a little harder to see with that part of the room being darker, but he could still make out his feet on the ground. Hal then slowly raised his head and looked around the room.

Despite it being dark and out of focus, it looked exactly how Hal remembered it. Maybe a little cleaner then the last time he saw it, but it was still the same. Deciding to take a little bit of a risk, Hal turned to face the covered window. Putting one hand up to somewhat cover his eyes, he lifted the corner of the blanket up and looked outside.

Even though his hand kept the light from going directly into his eyes, it was still extremely bright outside, brighter than he had ever seen before. He assumed that it was because he had just gotten so used to the dark that it made the light that much more intense. After only looking for about a minute, Hal let the corner of the blanket drop, blocking out the light once again. He had seen enough to know that his mind wasn’t playing tricks on him.

Hal then turned back to face Maggie, who was still fast asleep. Trying to be as careful as he could, the young man slowly laid back down on his right side so he could face her. Even though she was still a little blurry, she was as beautiful as an angel to him. That would never change. He lifted his hand to stroke her cheek, but lowered it when a soft moan slipped past her lips and her eyes opened.

“Hey Maggie.” Hal whispered, keeping his gaze on her.

“Hey.” Maggie replied just as quietly, opening her dark brown eyes to see Hal laying right in front of her, his face turned in her direction as though he was watching her.

“What?” Maggie questioned, a little confused when she realized that Hal seemed to just be watching her.

“Did I ever tell you how beautiful you are?” Hal asked, lifting up one hand to push her blonde hair away from her face. At first, the look of confusion stayed on her face, then suddenly turned into a look of realization as everything finally clicked. The way his eyes were focused on her, the way he knew exactly where to put his hand in order to push her hair away, the smile on his face. Maggie then suddenly sat up. Hal quickly did the same.

“Wait, can you?” Maggie started to ask but couldn’t finish the question. She was pretty sure of what was happening, but she didn’t want to get her hopes up. It wasn’t really in her nature to be optimistic.

“Not quite as clear as day, but yeah.” Hal answered, still smiling. A wide smile came upon Maggie’s own face as an ecstatic laugh escaped her lips. Then Hal leaned forward and kissed her, his hands coming up to cradle her face. Maggie was quick to return the kiss, her own hands coming to rest on his sides.

Pulling away, Maggie said, “I’ve got to go get Anne.”

Hal pulled her in for one more kiss before he let her go and watched as she rushed out of the room.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

An hour later, Hal was sitting on the foot of the bed, while Anne stood in front of him, holding up another object and asking him what it was.

Minutes after Maggie had left to go get the doctor, she returned with not only Anne, but with his Dad and brothers as well. Apparently, they had been together when Maggie gave the news that Hal’s eyesight seemed to have returned and were just as anxious to know if it was indeed true. First she examined him, then asked him how his head was feeling and what his vision was like. After that, she started picking up random objects and asking him what it was or would point at random spots or people around the room to get a sense of how good his vision was and how much longer it would take for his eyesight to fully return to normal.

“Well Hal, you are indeed on the mend. I would say it will be a couple of more days before your sight it back to normal, but I still want you to keep your eyes away from any bright lights until then.” Anne happily reported, causing everyone in the room to smile.

Hearing that, Matt immediately ran to his older brother and threw his arms around him. Hal saw him coming and opened his arms so he could hug his little brother just as tightly as Matt was holding on to him.

Tom, Ben, and Anne grinned at Matt’s response, but Hal could see the relief in all three of their eyes. He assumed that Maggie’s face held the same look, but as she was standing right beside him, she wasn’t in his line of view. His eyesight wasn’t _that_ good.

For a moment the three of them just watched as Hal and Matt hugged, then Ben went over to his older brother, though at a much slower pace than his younger brother. He placed his hand on Hal’s shoulder, causing him to look up at the middle son. Hal’s vision may still be a little blurry, but he could easily read the expressions on Ben’s face. The joy that Hal’s vision wasn’t gone forever and the relief that he wasn’t going be blaming himself for his brother being blind anymore. Hal moved one of his arms and placed it on Ben’s as he smiled at him.

“Alright guys, we still have a lot to do today and none of us have even had breakfast yet. Come on.” Anne regretfully broke the happy moment.

Matt slowly pulled away, then asked, “Can I eat in here with you?”

Hal looked over at Maggie with a questioning look. When he saw her nod, he turned back to his youngest brother and said, “Sure.”

Matt beamed then ran out of the room so he could get his food and quickly hurry back. Ben gave Hal another clap on the shoulder before he too left the room. Once the two boys were gone, Tom made his way over to his oldest and wrapped his arms around Hal’s shoulders, pulling him close.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” Tom whispered in Hal’s ear. Hal just smiled and hugged his father back. After a minute, Tom pulled away, gave Hal another smile before he turned and joined Anne who was waiting for him by the door. Once he joined her side, they left Hal and Maggie alone.

“I’ll go get the food.” Maggie told him and was about to leave the room when Hal grabbed her hand and gently pulled her back. She looked at him with a mild confused expression and crouched down so she was eye-level with him, their heads almost touching.

“Thank you.” Hal said quietly, leaning his forehead against hers.

“For what?” Maggie asked.

“For being here.” Hal answered. Maggie smiled again and said, “Always.”

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

Later that night, Anne was finishing up with her patients in the infirmary when she saw Tom watching her from the doorway, a thoughtful expression on his face. She gave him a quick smile before turning her attention back to her last patient. When she was done, she made her way over to Tom.

“Hey. Long day?” Anne wondered as he reached for her hand which she grabbed.

“Yeah, but a happy one.” Tom said. As they started walking towards their room, Tom suddenly stopped, causing Anne to turn to face him. For a moment, they just stared at each other. Anne was about to ask him what was wrong, but he spoke first.

“I love you.” Anne smiled in response, but was still curious as to why he was suddenly telling her this now.

“I mean, I’m in love with you.” Tom said in a serious tone.

“I’m in love with you too.” Anne replied, still smiling but now had a confused look in her eyes as she tried to understand why Tom suddenly felt the need to tell her this.

“Marry me.” The words were so sudden that Anne wasn’t sure she heard right.

“What?”

“Seriously, marry me.” Tom repeated. Seeing how serious he actually was as well as the love in his eyes, Anne’s smile grew.

“Okay.”


	12. Changes

The next day, Tom and Weaver found the buried beamer. After talking with Cochise and Shaq, as well as Weaver, Anne, and his sons, he started to get people to unbury it. When they asked why, he revealed his idea of using it to go to the moon and blowing up the tower that the Espheni have there in order to knock out their technology.

Even though destroying the tower could be extremely beneficial for destroying the Espheni, it was a very risky idea. Once Tom had told his sons about the idea, and they became aware of the risks, they immediately protested their father’s plan. After everything that happened, everything they had all been through, they didn’t want to risk their father’s life on what could very much be a suicide mission. Unfortunately, there was no changing his mind.

That night though, they put their father’s plans, and their feelings about it behind them. That night, was when their father was marrying Anne Glass. The couple had broke the news to the Mason children early that morning, and word quickly spread through the camp from there. They decided to have the wedding as soon as possible, especially when Tom came up with the plan for the beamer, and decided to have it an night so Hal could be there, as Anne said he needed to keep his eyes protected from bright lights.

After dinner was eaten and cleared away, and all patrol groups were back, the remainder of the 2nd Mass came together in the now-ruined courtyard, breaking into two groups so there was something of an aisle between them. Tom and Weaver stood at one end, Hal, Maggie, Ben, and Matt close by.

Soon, Anne, with a small bouquet of wildflowers that someone had picked for her, walked down the aisle towards Tom, both of them smiling at each other. Everyone else in the group was either smiling or watching intently. Matt and Ben were definitely smiling, both happy that Anne was about to be officially part of their family, but Hal had a deep, thoughtful, look.

He of course was glad that his Dad found Anne, that he was lucky enough to fall in love after the death of his first wife, and Hal was happy that their family had a new member, but there was something else on his mind. Hal saw the expressions on his Dad’s and Anne’s face. Even though it was somewhat blurry, he could see how much they loved each other, and how happy they were, even if it was for just a moment before they had to go back to the reality of the war.

Turning his head to the right, Hal saw Maggie, also watching the proceedings with a grin. As though she sensed that someone was watching her, the blonde turned her head to look at him. Hal then gave her a smile as her wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. Maggie stepped closer so she was standing right beside her soldier and placed her arm around his waist. Hal pressed a kiss on her head as he thought to himself, _someday_. He then turned his attention back to the wedding that was going on.

“I promise to always have your back in a firefight. And I promise to try not to get killed.” Tom declared, his eyes full of love and sincerity focused right on Anne. In her dark brown eyes, he saw the same expression.

“I promise to do the same.” Anne replied, smiling at her very-soon to-be husband. Tom was quick to smile back.

“So Anne, do you take this man for better for worse for richer for poorer in sickness or in health till death do you part?” Weaver asked, looking over at her.

Still keeping her eyes on Tom, Anne said, “Yeah, I do.”

“I do too.” Tom said, not even waiting for Weaver to repeat the question.

“Well, as far as I’m concerned, you may kiss the bride.” Weaver stated. A small chuckle ran through the crowd as Tom pulled Anne close and kissed her. Everyone started clapping, smiles lightning up their faces.

**FSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFSFS**

That morning, it was back to business as usual. There were groups still building up the barricade, some getting ready to make a food run, and the others working on unburying the beamer that lay in the wreckage. However, that task didn’t need to be done when Shaq arrived with the whistle that had been found the day before.

Using it, and a device he created in order to make it work, he explained to Tom, Weaver, and Anne what it was, then provided a demonstration. Blowing on it, the beamer started shaking as it slowly rose into the air, the debris falling off in the process. He then got it to land and gave Tom the whistle. When he asked if it would also help them get to the moon, and back, Shaq explained that they needed a different signal in order to do that.

As Shaq agreed to help them find a way to get that signal so Tom’s plan would indeed work, their attention was drawn towards a small crowd that was starting to form at the other end of the camp. Tom, Weaver, Anne, and Ben immediately made their way over to see what was going on.

Once they were in front of the group, they stopped and stared in shock. A female figure wearing a red dress with a hood that was pulled up over her head stood in front of them, straight blonde hair running down her shoulders.

“Lexi!” Anne stated in shock. After her daughter killed Lourdes and left Chinatown, she wasn’t sure if she would ever see her daughter again. Despite everything Lexi did, she was still her daughter and Anne wasn’t going to just give up on her. Tom however, felt differently.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Tom demanded, eyes full of anger at the sight of his daughter.

“I came back to talk to you. There is so much I need to explain.” Lexi answered, her voice filled with desperation. The few people around immediately started muttering angrily, nobody wanting to see her and nobody wanting her with them. This time, knowing how much of a threat the girl could be, Tom started backing up.

“Everybody get back to cover!” Tom yelled, not wanting to risk losing anyone else because of Lexi. As he did that, he grabbed Ben’s arm and pulled him back so he could stand in front of his middle son.

“Dad.” Ben somewhat protested. He knew that his Dad was furious with Lexi, and he had every right to be, even Ben was angry with his sister for the attack. He lost some friends too, and his brother had almost been permanently blinded, but that didn’t mean he wanted any harm to come to his little sister.

“For all we know the Espheni could be right behind her.” Tom explained to Ben, still keeping himself in between his son and his daughter, while Lexi took down her red hood. A crowd was now beginning to form behind them, Pope among them. The minute he saw what was going on, he pushed his way to the front.

“What the h*ll you doing Mason?” Pope questioned, with a barely controlled tone. Tom knew that he now had to keep everyone calm, otherwise, all h*ll would break loose.

“Take it easy Pope, I'll handle this situation.” Tom told him, knowing that Pope was just itching to raise his gun and shoot the person they all blamed for the attack less than a week ago. And while Tom understood and was upset with Lexi too, a part of him reminded himself that she was still his daughter and if there was indeed a chance that they could get her back, he was willing to at least see if it was worth the risk.

“Handle it? Two weeks ago we were 200 strong! We're now down to about 20. And she's the one responsible.” Pope was quick to remind him. Murmurs of agreement came from the crowd that had gathered. Weaver then took charge of the situation.

“Back off! Until he's had a chance to gauge if she's a threat.” Weaver ordered. Everyone exchanged looks with each before turning to look at either Tom, Pope, or Lexi. Most of the group though started backing further and further away from the hybrid.

“If? You’re gonna talk to her? How about you put her down? Before she takes us all out.” Pope was all too happy to give suggestions, giving Lexi a menacing look. His hand on his gun tightened as he started to mentally prepare himself to fire at the one who had caused the several deaths of their group.

Tom moved to stand in between Pope and Lexi. For a moment they just stared at each, both wanting the other to back down. Though Pope really wanted to kill the hybrid, he knew that at the moment, he would have to get through Tom in order to do that, and he wasn’t willing to go that far. Yet, anyways.

Throwing Tom a disgusted look, Pope stalked off. The minute he was out of earshot, Tom went over to Weaver.

“I need you to make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.” Tom told the Colonel, knowing that Pope just leaving was far too easy, that he had another plan that most likely ended with the death of his daughter.

“Mission impossible, be careful about-” Weaver started only for Tom to cut him off.

“Yeah yeah.” Tom cut him off, not needing to hear about how much of a threat his daughter could be. He had already seen that when she killed Lourdes, let the Espheni attack, killing several 2nd Mass members and injuring more, including Hal. Tom then walked towards Lexi while the rest of the group left, including Ben, though he did it very reluctantly.

“It's so good to see you both, I came to apologise, to tell you, you were right. Trusting the Espheni was a terrible mistake.” Lexi admitted, giving her parents a small smile. She really was grateful to see that her parents were both alive and safe.

“That's quite an understatement.” Tom stated, giving the girl a glare. The smile immediately dropped from her face, and she looked down in shame. Anne however, ignored Tom’s remark, instead, focusing on her daughter’s different feature.

“Your eyes. They’re different. They're the way they were before the cocoon.” After Lexi had woken up from the cocoon, her eyes were an unnatural, dark, gold. Now, they were back to the chocolate brown from before. The way they had been when she was born. Lexi slowly looked back up at her Mom, a somewhat hopeful look in her eyes.

“And I can see clearly now. For the first time I know what I need to do. The Espheni are monsters. I want to help you destroy them.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I just want to say this in case anyone at all gets offended about how I’ve gone about Hal’s emotions, particularly his anger towards Tom in this chapter. Remember, that this chapter is very one sided, and it’s because I really wanted to get Hal’s emotions and thoughts as to what happened. I am not trying to bash any characters, though I do think (mostly Tom), was in the wrong. To be honest, I have not watched all of season 4. I think I watched the first, 3 or 4 episodes and the very last two, because I really don’t like what happens in season 4. Hal is my favorite character and I really hate the way he was treated, so I got my information from my friend who has watched it. I know that this chapter kind of bashes Tom a little bit, but I’m writing this mostly through Hal’s eyes, and I’d imagine right now, and with what I had Ben say would have made him very angry. I know he’s usually, forgive and forget, but I think everyone has a point where they say ‘enough is enough’ and they are simply unable to, for lack of better term, put up with it, any longer. The other characters will get their own voice and say in the rest of the story.


End file.
